King Solomon

God’s Gift of Love

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Wisdom Celebrates God’s Gift of Love

Song of Solomon 1 through 8

The Song of Solomon is written about the love of a husband and a wife for each other.

Most scholars believe this book was written by King Solomon.

We know that Solomon wrote many songs, but this song is the only one approved by the Holy Spirit to be included in the canon of the Bible.

1Ki 4:32 And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs were a thousand and five.

This book is probably written to the Jews, but we know that every book of the Bible was also written to the Church.

There are several ways that could be used to interpret the words of this book, but it is always best to use a literal view of the Scriptures.

2Pe 1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
2Pe 1:20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
2Pe 1:21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Wisdom Celebrates God’s Gift of Love.

We should interpret this book and its text naturally and plainly.

It is a song about human, married love as God intended it to be.

The marriage between one male and one female is the only approved marriage in the Scriptures.

Everything else is an abomination to God and living in sin.

We should be able to see an actual, historical relationship of King Solomon and his most loved first wife, a Shulamite woman.

We can also see in typology that this marriage could be used as a type of the relationship of our Lord Jesus Christ to His Church.

It should also represent our own love for our Savior.

The one thing we must do as we study the Bible is not to make this story fit some cultural mold.

Almost every king in the day of King Solomon had a harem, and it was expected of them largely for the purpose of expanding their seed.

Many of the king’s marriages were for political purposes to build alliances with kings of other nations to provide security, but also prosperity for his nation.

The Bible in no way defends the practice of polygamy!

Deu 17:17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.

God uses the leaders that he puts in place in every nation.

King Solomon was living in sin!

Neh 13:26 Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless, even him did outlandish women cause to sin.

We can also understand that none of Solomon’s marriages to this harem were romantic or loving.

Many of these wives were considered possessions.

Most of these wives lived with this and accepted it.

These things remained this way until the coming of Jesus Christ, as he brought changes even to the Jews.

Jesus Christ elevated the status of women at that time and still does today.

A relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ is the best relationship that any of us can achieve, male or female.

It is the epistles of the New Testament that reveal God’s intention in every marriage of a male and a female.

There are no other God approved marriages other than a male born a male and a female born a female to each other.

The marriage of King Solomon to this Shulamite woman was not political.

We can see the beauty of marital love and God’s approval of the sexual relationship within a godly marriage.

We can also see a type of Spiritual relationship between Jesus Christ and His Church (The Bride of Christ).

*Son 1:1 The song of songs, which is Solomon’s.
Son 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth: for thy love is better than wine.
Son 1:3 Because of the savour of thy good ointments thy name is as ointment poured forth, therefore do the virgins love thee.
Son 1:4 Draw me, we will run after thee: the king hath brought me into his chambers: we will be glad and rejoice in thee, we will remember thy love more than wine: the upright love thee.

If we love the Lord Jesus Christ, then we should love the Word of God.

We know from the Book of Genesis to the Book of Revelation that the Word of God is all about the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

We also know that every word, every phrase, every passage in the Word of God is inspired by God Himself, and it is profitable for teaching, for reproving, for correction, and for training in righteousness so that we can be equipped for the good work of the Gospel.

2Ti 3:16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
2Ti 3:17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

This Song of Solomon is no different; it is the inspired Word of God!

This is not a song about Solomon; it is a song about love!

It is a song about human love, romantic love between a man and a woman.

These are the words of the bride as she states her passionate love for her bridegroom.

She does not name him. It was needless because all who know her know who her Bridegroom is and is the only One in her thoughts.

If we put in the name of Jesus Christ, then those kisses of Jesus are meant to imply everything in Christ, and with Christ, Jesus in his person, and Jesus in his fulness, suitableness, and all-sufficiency, so on our part the kiss of grace implies everything that can denote love, adoration, faith, dependance, homage, subjection, and praise.

If we apply this action to ourselves, it should mean that we cast ourselves on the Lord Jesus as a poor, dying sinner in need of salvation, saved by His blood.

We can see that His kisses had an intoxicating effect on this wife, His bride.

In most cases, this ointment is the oil of the olive, which many times is often perfumed.

Oil in the Bible many times refers to the Holy Spirit.

1Sa 16:13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.

This wife could only imagine the scent of her husband, whose ointment was just right for her senses.

In the same way, His fragrance filled the air around Him; his good name, His character, and His reputation had saturated the community of those who had made themselves pure through the blood of Christ.

Remember, a good name is better than precious ointment.

She loved the way He smelled, but most of all she loved who He was.

No wonder those who were pure loved Him.

He was the most sought-after man in the Kingdom.

She was now the envy of all the other maidens just as the Church is the envy of flase religion today.

*Son 2:1 I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys.
Son 2:2 As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters.
Son 2:3 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.
Son 2:4 He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.
Son 2:5 Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love.
Son 2:6 His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me.
Son 2:7 I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please.

The term “the Rose of Sharon” is often associated with our Lord Jesus Christ, symbolizing His beauty, His perfection, and the love He offers to all who believe in Him.

Many see “the Rose of Sharon” as the Church or as the Believers who are cherished as the people of God.

Many see “the Rose of Sharon” as it describes the intimate relationship between our Lord Jesus and all those who love Him, and the love God has for His creations.

Nowhere in the New Testament is our Lord Jesus actually referred to as the Rose of Sharon.

He is referred to by many as the Rose of Sharon because many see the Rose as the most beautiful of all flowers.

Sharon is a place, and it is one of the largest valley plains in all of Israel.

In the time of King Solomon, it was considered a wild and fertile plain and had many beautiful flowers that grew wildly.

Sharon was known for its beauty and majesty.

Almost all Bible scholars say this Shulamite woman was the person who is described as the Rose of Sharon, as King Solomon’s bride.

Many say she is described as a black woman, and she could have been, and there would have been no problems if she were.

What she was saying was that she was not like all those other women who were spoiled with riches, but that she worked out in the elements of the seasons, including the sun, and the sun had darkened her skin compared to the fair maidens of Israel.

This young shulamite was saying that she was not one of those dainty spoiled children of royalty.

She was not afraid of hard work.

To us who love Him, this passage refers to Jesus as being the Bridegroom and the Church as His Bride.

If the Church is not a hard working church it is not the Bride of Christ.

The Holy Spirit is using the “lover” analogy to describe the personal relationship that He wants us to have with God’s Son.

Our Scripture says that she is the Rose of Sharon, a type of country flower, and is indeed a type of the Church.

In type, the Church is the Rose of Sharon and the Lily among the thorns.

The Church is the Lily among the thorns of worldly people.

It is Solomon who speaks up to his bride, saying she is as a lily compared to the thorns of other women, as the Church is in this world.

As far as Solomon was concerned, there was not another woman in the world like his Shulamite bride.

She may have seen herself as pretty, but she did not see herself as something special, she confessed she was just an average, everyday wildflower.

She was not seeking compliments, nor a false sense of modesty; she was just being sincere.

She said that Solomon was like an apple tree in a forest of other trees.

Apple trees did not grow in the forest of Israel at that time, and if one was found, it was because someone had dropped a seed from an apple they had brought from somewhere else or a passing bird.

Solomon had snatched her away from hard labor, and she was comfortable in his shade. Solomon had actually rescued her from her previous life.

His fruit was sweeter than anything she had ever known.

We can see that this apple tree is in type as the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Church now lies in His shadow His safety.

In verse four, we see this bride give her testimony to her friends of how her life had changed, as if they were all in the banquet house where she is the honored guest.

In type, we see that the Born-Again child of God, as they have entered into that Heavenly House of the Lord, and sitting at the table of the Lord Jesus Christ, no longer the Bride but now the wife.

Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Rev 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Rev 19:9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

This young bride had to admit she was lovesick and overwhelmed by the love shown to her by her husband, the King.

In type, this is the Church sitting at the feet of Jesus, amazed at the love He has shown to us.

She does not talk so much of her love as she does of His love for her.

Isa 54:5 For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

As he embraces her, she feels that moment of rest and security that she has never had in life.

She wishes to remain in His arms forever.

The left arm is the arm that comes as it was from His heart; the right arm is the arm of His power.

The fact that his left hand is under her head also means that he lifts her head to look at him.

The fact that his right arm embraces her means that he keeps it protective around her.

Deu 33:27 The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.

Love cannot be forced upon anyone, or they will lose their security.

Those female gazelles and female deer are shy animals and will flee at the first sign of danger.

This Shulamite had a great desire to consummate the marriage, but she knew she must remain chaste until that time came, and she warned all those around her.

She made her friends promise her that they would also wait for the right person.

In type, we see that we must make a strong commitment to the Lord and stick with our convictions.

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

*Son 3:6 Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant?
Son 3:7 Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel.
Son 3:8 They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night.
Son 3:9 King Solomon made himself a chariot of the wood of Lebanon.
Son 3:10 He made the pillars thereof of silver, the bottom thereof of gold, the covering of it of purple, the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem.
Son 3:11 Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon with the crown wherewith his mother crowned him in the day of his espousals, and in the day of the gladness of his heart.

The wedding custom of that day in Israel was that weddings did not take place at the Temple nor at any Synagogue, but rather in the couple’s homes.

There would be a procession to the bride’s home led by the Groom, who would then escort her back to their own new residence.

Next, a wedding feast was given, which could last up to a week or longer.

Though the wedding feast was prolonged, that couple would consummate their marriage on the first night.

Verse 6 tells us that King Solomon and the Shulamite began their procession back to Jerusalem.

This verse tells us what the onlookers saw.

King Solomon, the richest man in the world, would have provided for an extravagant ceremony.

That pillar of smoke reminds us of the time that the Lord Jesus led the Jews out of Egypt.

The bride is perfumed, which tells us of her excellent virtues and service, which are acceptable to God and the Grace of Jesus Christ, which are a sweet savor to our Heavenly Father.

He makes His Bride enriched and beautiful with the perfume and powders. The spices of Arabia were famous at that time.

Rev 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.

2Co 2:14 Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
2Co 2:15 For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:

That wilderness was a place of bondage and misery, sin and humiliation, but Jerusalem was the mountain of the Lord.

Psa 68:8 The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.

Today the Church is passing through the wilderness, and the Church must follow the Lord Jesus, King of Kings, Lord of lords to New Jerusalem.

We must leave the wilderness of sin and unbelief to have an everlasting union with our Savior.

As the Church has been recognized, then the Bridegroom must be recognized.

Those sixty valiant men were twice the number of men who usually traveled with the King, but He wants the bride to feel safe.

We can see that the bed is a type of the Church, which is beautiful through the beauty of Jesus Christ.

Which is also safe by the protection of Jesus Christ.

In which Jesus Christ is glorified, and all believers enjoy sweet fellowship with Him throughout eternity.

We should understand that God will use whatever it takes to protect His Church from the wiles of the Devil.

Every valiant man was prepared to fight to prevent danger to the Church.

That darkness is the world of Satan, the Devil.

1Th 5:5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
1Th 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
1Th 5:7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
1Th 5:8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
1Th 5:10 Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
1Th 5:11 Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

No matter how bright the Church shines, it cannot shine like our Savior.

That chariot is where the Bride and the Bridegroom ride together is in typeology the Gospel, where our Savior was triumphant, and the Church rides into Glory.

1Pe 1:25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

Heaven is going to be the most beautiful place we have ever laid eyes on, and we do not have the words to describe how Heaven will be.

We are still to be busy with the work the Lord has given us to do, even while we know the Trumpet could sound at any moment.

John the Baptist said John 3:29 He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.

Rev 19:6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
Rev 19:8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Rev 19:9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

Weddings just do not seem to be important in today’s world.

Many couples just move in together to see if they are compatible and most of them separate because they forgot relationships take commitment.

*Son 4:12 A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed.
Son 4:13 Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard,
Son 4:14 Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices:
Son 4:15 A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon.

In that day, many gardens were enclosed to keep animals and strangers from having access to them.

Solomon was saying that his bride was like an enclosed garden that only he had access to.

The Lord Jesus feels this way about the Church as He strives to keep the Church pure, if the Church looks to Him only as the Head of the Church.

The true Church is defended by the providence of Almighty God and reserved for His use.

Whosoever loves the Lord Jesus Christ and shares their love with Him alone will shut themselves off from other objects of love.

Mrk_12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

Solomon was praising this Shulamite for her purity until the marriage ceremony was completed.

The Shulamite was bringing to her husband a precious gift, a gift that could only be given once.

This speaks to all the fair maidens in the Church.

It is a gift for that one special person on the wedding day. The same one who has that endless love for them.

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Solomon continues to describe how lovely his bride is to him.

She was the greatest orchard.
She was the most pleasant of all fruits.
She was the most fragrant flower.
She was the most aromatic herb.
She was like the best of all perfumes.
She was the sweetest of all sugar canes.
She was the most fragrant of all the oils.
She was the most divine of all females.
She was the most anointed of all oils.
She was a living fountain of water.

She was now ready and available to refresh the life of her husband.

Psa 46:4 There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.
Psa 46:5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

*Son 5:1 I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.

Solomon knew it was this Shulamite who made him complete.

Gen 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

Nine times in this one Scripture, Solomon uses the word “my”.

His bride had given all she had to him.

This is exactly what the Lord Jesus expects from His Church.

Joh 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

1Jn 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.
1Jn 3:19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
1Jn 3:21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.
1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.
1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment.
1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.

No doubt that our young people should take a good look at the Song of Solomon once they know what it means.

*Son 5:2 I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.
Son 5:3 I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?
Son 5:4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.
Son 5:5 I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.
Son 5:6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.

There comes a time when the honeymoon is over and reality sets in.

Before we get to this passage, let’s just keep in mind how much of the Church has left the Lord Jesus, and He is outside the door of the Church wanting to get back in.

Rev 3:15 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.
Rev 3:16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
Rev 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.
Rev 3:20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
Rev 3:21 To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne.
Rev 3:22 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

This is the Church Age we are in today.

In Chapter 5, Verse 2, we begin to see that the newness of marriage has passed, and life has set in. Life can be harsh even for those who have such great love.

This Shulamite was no longer “my bride”, but she was “my darling”.

His darling wife locked the door on him and did not let him in.

It is possible this new bride of Solomon was dreaming and had two dreams, but maybe one was a dream and the other was reality.

Either way, she was alone in the bedroom, and we do not know why.

As a believer, there may be times when we think that we are so armored up that we have lost our focus on the Lord.

If we ever lose our focus on the Lord, we are treading in dangerous waters.

This change in love is noted in the Scriptures.

Rev 2:1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
Rev 2:2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
Rev 2:3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
Rev 2:4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Solomon knew she was unhappy with him, and we may not know the real reason, but He is King, and He has a large harem, and as king, he had many obligations.

He explains that he has been working as his head was filled with dew and his hair with the drops of his sweat.

She refused his advances. She was already washed, disrobed, and was in bed. Why should she dirty her feet she said to herself.

She refused to unlock the door. It is possible that she was just too tired.

We do not have to think that Solomon was trying to force the door open, probably because he could certainly have had the door opened if he chose to do so.

Husbands must realize that their wives could get tired with all the homework they have to do and many work outside the home.

It seems she was angry with Solomon for some reason.

We have to wonder how a husband with over one thousand women could ever have a true husband-to-wife relationship.

This Shulamite began to realize that she was not the queen in her household.

Solomon did not really understand God.

Eph 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
Eph 5:24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
Eph 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
Eph 5:26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
Eph 5:27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Eph 5:28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.

Solomon’s bride was hurt, angry, and resentful, but her heart began to soften, and she repented of her anger, and her desire for him returned.

She notices his hands as he reaches for her.

The Lord Jesus said: Luk 24:39 Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.

Psa 45:8 All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

When she reached the door to let her husband in, she could smell the myrrh that he had left behind upon the lock.

The Shulamite paid a high price for not letting her husband into the bedchamber.

We will pay a high price when we reject the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Jhn_3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Solomon had not rejected her.

Solomon had remembered the place where they had first met and had not forgotten the love he had for her.

*Son 8:6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.
Son 8:7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.

A seal was a piece of metal, usually round or oval, which meant it was a sign of belonging to the king.

Seals are sometimes worn on the finger as a ring or upon a string or chain around the neck.

It would be applied to softened wax to seal some document or other government papers.

Every Christian wears the seal of the Lord: 2Ti_2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

That seal is the Holy Spirit: Eph_1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

We are sealed until the day the Lord Jesus returns to take us home: Eph_4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

The Shulamite bride of King Solomon wanted such a seal on Solomon’s heart so he could not give his heart to another.

She said to Solomon, “Place me as the seal as a signet ring upon thy heart”.

Love is as strong as death.

She wishes to be united in the closest way with her lover and valued as his most precious possession.

She knows that jealousy is like the fires of hell, unquenchable.

She knows that no amount of water could put out such fervent love as she has for Solomon.

It is a fact that love is life itself.

We need the Lord Jesus Christ because we need His love and lest we forget, He is the Light of Life.

Jhn_13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another

Eph_3:17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
Eph_3:19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.

Joh 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?
Joh 6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Amen

Shame on Him

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Solomon’s Fame Was Reduced to Shame

Book 1 Kings 10:1-7, 24-27, 11: 4-13

What is fame? Fame is a favorable report of good or great actions that exalt character.

News of the knowledge of Solomon and his wisdom was spreading around the known world of that day.

What is shame? Those things that bring reproach and degrade a person in the estimation of others. Dishonor, disgrace.

Solomon was living on the achievements and the reputation of his father who caused security and peace to come to Israel.

Under Solomon, Israel became a great power ranking almost as great as Egypt which is why Egypt made a bond with Solomon and Pharoh’s daughter became the wife of Solomon.

Israel ranked even as great as Assyria at that time.

After Solomon Israel has never reached those same boundaries.

These things were credited to Solomon’s wisdom.

Solomon turned Israel from a military people to a people of commerce.

In reality, Solomon turned a people made free by King David into slaves and concentrated the wealth of the whole nation in the capital Jerusalem and most of Israel suffered.

As God would say, Israel did not reap the fruits of its government.

The downfall of Solomon began when he listened to his pagan wives and his wisdom left him.

Solomon was by nature a man of peace, yet he maintained a large military scattered in various places to help bring peace.

No nation had defeated his father David, but Solomon had no desire to extend the boundaries of Isreal, and it was possible for him to do so.

Solomon’s chief ally was Hiram, the king of Tyre which is Phoenicia.

The Temple of Solomon was built in seven years, but Solomon spent thirteen years building his own palace which was called the House of the Forest of Lebanon.

It is these things that made Solomon famous throughout the world.

Solomon had many foreign visitors seeking his wisdom.

One of those was the Queen of Sheba.

*1Ki 10:1 And when the queen of Sheba, heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions.

Sheba was a land in Arabia, which is modern Yemen today, rather than Ethiopia.

Yemen was the chief spice country in that area at that time.

Sheba was about fifteen hundred miles from Jerusalem so this Queen had traveled a great distance requiring a lot of time.

The Temple had been built in the name of the Lord God of Israel.

We can be sure when questions arose about the temple there would be questions about the God of that Temple.

No one else has such a God who is alive!

Much of the world believed that the wisdom of Solomon had come from his God, and they would be correct.

This Queen of Sheba did not make this connection, she came to prove him with hard questions.

Some say these were questions she could not trust anyone else to answer.

Many of the questions could have been hard riddles as some believe.

It does not seem to me that this Queen showed much interest in Jehovah God to her downfall.

Mat 12:42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.

Could Solomon have answered, what is the purpose of life? We have all asked this question in our lifetime.

Could he have said, “Where do we truly come from?”

There are billions of people out there today who would like to know, “what is the purpose of it all”?

The truth is in Jehovah God!

*1Ki 10:2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.

We can believe that this Queen was also seeking a trade agreement.

She brought a large quantity of spices, gold, and precious jewels.

We can be sure that she traveled with military protection, but it is not mentioned, and they would have been stopped and not allowed to enter Jerusalem maybe even the border of Israel.

To travel for fifteen hundred miles meant she was serious about meeting King Solomon.

It seems that this Queen was not the wife of a King but the actual ruler of these people.

She was serious about seeking the answers to great questions of life so she could be a better ruler.

King Solomon answered all her questions!

*1Ki 10:3 And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not any thing hid from the king, which he told her not.
1Ki 10:4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon’s wisdom, and the house that he had built,
1Ki 10:5 And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

Solomon’s kingdom was famous not only for its material prosperity but also for his great wisdom.

King Solomon got so caught up in his wisdom that today we would use the phrase, “he got the big head” and we will soon see how these things affected him.

King Solomon had spent seven years building the Temple, but he spent thirteen years building his own mansion. After this, he rebuilt many cities most of which belonged to Israel, but he rebuilt some cities that did not belong to Israel.

This Queen of Sheba was more impressed with Solomon’s house than she was with the Temple of God.

She was another pagan who had her own false gods.

Solomon answered all of her questions, and this Queen was overwhelmed with the wisdom of Solomon. I do not read anywhere where Solomon gave the credit for his wisdom to His God and our God Jehovah.

No doubt this Queen had all types of questions with some riddles but also diplomatic and ethical questions.

This truth would make Solomon a trustworthy business partner and a possible ally, though her nation was fifteen hundred miles away from Israel.

Today Yemen can fire rockets and drones fifteen hundred miles into Israel and are mortal enemies of Israel.

Of course, Israel can do the same and are still under the power of God.

These servants were the officers and distinguished people who were privileged to sit at the king’s table and were arranged according to rank and were in large numbers at royal banquets.

These ministers were those who stood to serve the guests doubt they were dressed in a way to distinguish them from the guests but were fit to serve royalty.

2Ch 9:4 And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

The wisdom and prosperity of King Solomon and his achievements had reached the uttermost parts of the world, and this Queen admitted that these reports had been true.

It does not matter so much what this Queen thought of these things, it matters more of what God thought of these things.

Luk 12:27 Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Luk 12:28 If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Luk 12:29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
Luk 12:30 For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.
Luk 12:31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.

As a pagan Gentile, this Queen could not go into the Temple though she may have seen a secret way that the king could get into the Temple.

*1Ki 10:6 And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.
1Ki 10:7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.

We must understand the mission of Israel in the time of Solomon and now the mission of the Church is to point all nations to God.

Israel has failed so far, will the Church also fail?

Israel was not to compete with our nations for riches or even military power. Jehovah God is the power of Israel!

Jehovah is the power of the Church.

We are not in some competition with religions!

We have the truth of Christianity!

The Church is to be a bright and shining light in this world.

It was the same for Israel in the days of King Solomon.

The Queen came to Solomon tortured by questions, and it does not seem she got all the answers she needed.

Certainly, the things she said about Solomon were true.

He was the wisest man upon the earth but not as wise as Jesus Christ,

He was the richest man on the earth, but no earthy riches can compare to the Glory of Heaven!

*1Ki 10:8 Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.
1Ki 10:9 Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and justice.
1Ki 10:10 And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones: there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon

This queen brought the best spices of Yemen, many of them used in perfumes of that day.
She brought a lot of gold and precious stones.
She brought sweet, scented wood.

This wood Solomon was used in his palace.

2Ch 9:11 And the king made of the algum trees terraces to the house of the LORD, and to the king’s palace, and harps and psalteries for singers: and there were none such seen before in the land of Judah.
2Ch 9:12 And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which she had brought unto the king. So she turned, and went away to her own land, she and her servants.

As the Queen was about to leave she made a great speech to those servants of Solomon.

She said from what her eyes had seen and now had heard not even half of the truth of King Solomon was told.

She also took a moment to praise Jehovah that out of His eternal love to His people Israel, he had given them a king to do justice and righteousness.

Some say this Queen was converted to Judaism, but this is not true.

Like many who praised the God of Israel, they observed Him as just another god in the world of many gods just as many think today.

God had His reasons for putting Solomon on the throne of Israel.

1) It fulfilled a promise to David who was a man after God’s own heart.
2) Solomon who was chosen to build the Temple of God.

After this Solomon transgressed against the Lord.

God had written the qualifications for the kings of Israel.

Deu 17:14 When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me;
Deu 17:15 Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother.
Deu 17:16 But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.
Deu 17:17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.
Deu 17:18 And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:
Deu 17:19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them:
Deu 17:20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

King Solomon disobeyed in every area!

1) He had too much gold.
2) He owned thousands of horses.
3) He gathered hundreds of wives and concubines.

All the earth sought the wisdom of Solomon.

*1Ki 10:24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
1Ki 10:25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
1Ki 10:26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.
1Ki 10:27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.

Solomon was not greater than anyone else and neither was this God’s intent.

Solomon became greater because all the world sought him out for his wisdom.

They brought him gold that he wasted on shields and other foolish things when he could have helped the cause of God, and he could have removed the strain of taxation upon his own people, but he did not.

Solomon made two hundred large shields and three hundred shields of gold that made beautiful displays but were useless in battle.
They were too heavy and too soft to make effective shields.

Each of those shields would be valued at over a quarter million dollars today and the smaller shields at over sixty thousand dollars or about thirty-three million dollars.

They were eventually taken by a foreign king.

Solomon made silver to be worthless which did not help the economies of the world of that day.

In the end, it was women who truly brought King Solomon down to shame.

*1Ki 11:1 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
1Ki 11:2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
1Ki 11:3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
1Ki 11:4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

Over half of Solomon’s reign was over by the time the Temple, his own palace, and other buildings were completed.

These things took up much of his personal time.

We could add that during this time Solomon had negotiated peace agreements between Israel and many nations, and those agreements were sealed by the marriage of that ruler’s daughter.

As Solomon began to spend more time with the many wives he had, he was influenced by them.

One man wrote that the home of Solomon was afflicted with the curse of his polygamy and his kingdom with the curse of his despotism, which means he had absolute power, authority unlimited, and uncontrolled power over the people.

Most all alliances Israel had with other rulers ended with the death of Solomon even the long relationship of Solomon with Hiram.

As we looked at last week, no one knew where the Book of Moses(the Pentateuch) was located. Solomon certainly was not obedient to the Word of God concerning the kings of Israel.

Many believe that the prophet Jeremiah wrote this book of First Kings, and he simply says that Solomon loved many strange women.

it is these women who caused the decline of King Solomon!

These things describe a heart that is wandering away from God!

Solomon had seven hundred women who were considered to be his wives.
Solomon had three hundred women with the title concubines.

These were the women who were in Solomon’s harem while he was King of Israel.

Son 6:8 There are threescore queens, fourscore concubines, and virgins without number.

This verse tells us of those women who were in Solomon’s court at one time.

This would be sixty queens, eighty concubines, and virgins without number.

King Solomon like his father went against the institution of Jehovah.

What is the marriage institution of Jehovah God?

Gen 2:21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
Gen 2:22 And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
Gen 2:23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.
Gen 2:24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

When God gave Adam his wife. God did not do this by forming Eve out of the dust of the earth just like Adam. Then she would be independent of Adam.
God formed Eve from Adam. He does not do this out of his head, for she is not his superior. Nor does he make her out of his feet, for she is not his slave. He forms her from his side.
She is therefore someone of equal value, standing beside him.

Solomon took wives from many nations, also going against the Word of God about strange wives.

Deu 7:3 Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son.
Deu 7:4 For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly.

Solomon not only took these many women into his house, but he also took their gods.

We should understand that someone who knows the Word of God and deviates from it often makes it worse than someone who has never known Jehovah.

When a child of God falls into corruption it is the worst corruption!

The lesson for us who are up in years is, that we may think the dangers of life no longer threaten us but we are wrong.

Satan will do his best to ruin our testimony at any age!

*1Ki 11:5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
1Ki 11:6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
1Ki 11:7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
1Ki 11:8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

Ashtoreth(Ishtar, Astarte, queen of heaven)) was the Moon goddess of the Zidonians usually associated with Baal(Baalim, Baalism) the Sun god.

Throughout the world, we see temples and pyramids built to honor the Sun god and the Moon god

Milcom(Molech, Chemosh) is the national god of Ammon, God said he was an abomination!

It is this god to whom children were sacrificed. This is the god of the abortionists in my opinion.

Solomon was not seeking God’s own heart as did his father David.

Solomon had temples built for the worship of these false goods and he joined them in their worship of them.

He did the same for all his strange wives!

The word strange means all his wives who were not of Israel, we could say wives from foreign nations.

Certainly, Jehovah was angry with Solomon.

*1Ki 11:9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,
1Ki 11:10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded.
1Ki 11:11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

Do you want to make Jehovah angry? Go against His Word.

Do you want to really get Jehovah riled up? Go against Him after He has warned you!

This is why we have the Holy Spirit living inside us!

Joh 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
Joh 16:14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

What had God told Solomon?

1Ki 9:3 And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
1Ki 9:4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
1Ki 9:5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
1Ki 9:6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
1Ki 9:7 Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
1Ki 9:8 And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?

Today we have the Word of if we have a proper translation and we are to do our best to be obedient to it.

As for King Solomon he met with God face to face and he was told the consequences of failing to acknowledge the Word of God.

We know that God will do exactly what he says he will do.

1Ki 11:26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, “Solomon’s servant”, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
1Ki 11:27 And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches of the city of David his father.
1Ki 11:28 And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.
1Ki 11:29 And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field:
1Ki 11:30 And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces:
1Ki 11:31 And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee:
1Ki 11:32 (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:)
1Ki 11:33 Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did David his father.

But God will never break a promise he has made!

*1Ki 11:12  Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son.

1Ki 11:13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.
1Ki 11:14 And the LORD stirred up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king’s seed in Edom.

Solomon had forfeited the promise made to him from Jehovah.

God would allow the line of David to continue through a son of Solomon because David had chosen Jerusalem and not some other city.

This is a sign of God’s “grace”!

2Sa 7:15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
2Sa 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
2Sa 7:17 According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

This promise from God will ultimately be fulfilled through the Messiah the Lord Jesus Christ.

You see the Lord Jesus Christ did appear Himself to begin the New Testament and the Law of Grace and through His disciples, this word had spread around the world and only those who accept the Work of Jesus Christ, the “Gospel” will be allowed into God’s New Jerusalem and God’s New Heaven where King Jesus will rule forever.

Amen

God Will Show Up

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Temple the Ark the Glory of God
 
Book of 2 Chronicles Chapter 5
 
 
After seven long years, the Temple and all its furnishings were completed.
 
1Ki 6:38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.
 
Solomon gathered the entire nation and its leaders and its priests to the dedication of the Temple.
 
This gathering was no longer to Gibeon the site of the Tabernacle, but to Jerusalem the place God had chosen Himself.
 
Even today the Jews are looking forward to the day they can reestablish their worship of the Lord God Jehovah in a Temple dedicated to Him.
 
We certainly need a place to worship to honor God.
 
Heb 10:22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
Heb 10:24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
 
God Himself says it is more important to gather together today than it was back in the day of the dedication of Solomon’s Temple.
 
If we do not dedicate our places of worship to be used for the worship of the Lord, then they will be used for anything other than that.
 
Dedicate means to set apart for sacred use.
 
Sacred means consecrated; dedicated; or devoted to.
 
We also need to dedicate ourselves to the Lord for His use!
 
Most every nation at this time had a temple dedicated to some false god, and some had many.
 
This was the drive that moved King David. He wanted a magnificent temple dedicated to Jehovah the One True God.
 
Most people do not realize that God is about worship, and not about buildings!
 
Pagans built temples for gods who could not see, who could hear, and who could not speak to them.
 
2Co_6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the “temple of the living God”; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
 
There is only one “Living God”!
 
Jhn_6:69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, “the Son of the living God”.
 
Psa_84:2 My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the LORD: my heart and my flesh crieth out for the “living God”.
 
How can anyone serve a dead god or a god that does not exist?
 
The Living God is the God we need to have reverent fear of, and even actual fear.
 
Heb_10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
 
2 Chronicles Chapter 5 verse 1
 
2Ch 5:1 Thus all the work that Solomon made for the house of the LORD was finished: and Solomon brought in all the things that David his father had dedicated; and the silver, and the gold, and all the instruments, put he among the treasures of the house of God.
 
The Temple was King Solomon’s greatest work.
 
It was the Temple of Solomon that made the greatest impression on the known world at that time.
 
People would come far and wide to see this Temple of God.
 
The importance of the Temple was to ensure a central place of worship and more important a central place to offer sacrifices for sin.
 
The object of the Temple was to bring about a unity of faith and national unity among the people of Israel.
 
The object of the Temple was to fulfill the commandment of God to Moses.
 
Moses said, when you shall obtain possession of the land and have become established, then you shall have one place in which to appear before the Lord.
 
Deu_16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God “in the place which he shall choose”; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:
 
The Temple did provide a fixed habitation for Jehovah.
 
The Temple did provide a central place of worship where all the tribes of Israel might assemble at the three annual feasts.
 
It is these things that would preserve the unity of Israel.
 
According to the Book of Leviticus, there must be:
 
1) A place to meet Jehovah on the throne of “Grace”.
2) Sacrifices made for sin.
3) Priests as intermediaries between Jehovah and the people.
4) Times in which they could approach Jehovah with daily, weekly, monthly, and annual offerings.
5) A ritual telling how to approach God.
 
The Temple was in fact, a type of the most glorious building which is the individual believer!
 
1Co_3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
 
King David had not only provided the plunder he had taken for his conquest for the building of the Temple, but he also provided his riches to be dedicated to the upkeep of this Temple and to pay the priests.
 
David had also dedicated all the musical instruments he had to the Temple. Some he had made himself.
 
These instruments are listed in First Chronicles chapter 15.
 
1Ch 15:16 And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of musick, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy.
 
1Ch 15:24 And Shebaniah, and Jehoshaphat, and Nethaneel, and Amasai, and Zechariah, and Benaiah, and Eliezer, the priests, did blow with the trumpets before the ark of God: and Obededom and Jehiah were doorkeepers for the ark.
 
1Ch 15:28 Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.
 
So, we know of psalteries, harps, and cymbals, trumpets, and cornets.
 
A psaltery is a lyre or another type of harp just as a cornet is another type of trumpet.
 
Solomon next brought the Ark of the Covenant into the Temple according to the instructions of God.
 
The Ark was placed in the new Holy of Holies, the Most Holy Place in the Temple.
 
2Ch 5:2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion.
2Ch 5:3 Wherefore all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto the king in the feast which was in the seventh month.
2Ch 5:4 And all the elders of Israel came; and the Levites took up the ark.
2Ch 5:5 And they brought up the ark, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, these did the priests and the Levites bring up.
 
Many of these things from the time of Moses and those remade after the destruction of the Tabernacle by the Philistines were no longer usable for the new Temple and were stored at the Temple and preserved as relics.
 
Things such as the tent and a great many of the old-time utensils, including the Brazen Serpent.
 
The Feast of the Seventh month is the Feast of Tabernacles, sometimes called Booths, and also known as the Feast of the Ingathering.
 
It was to last seven days but for the dedication of the Temple, it lasted fourteen days.
 
1Ki 8:65 And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days.
1Ki 8:66 On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.
 
This is the feast that commemorates the forty-year wilderness journey.
 
It is also called Sukkot.
 
It is a celebration of the fall harvest and a time to build booths which are temporary shelters of branches to remember how the Hebrew people lived under God’s care during those forty years in the wilderness.
 
These things were repeated when the Hebrews returned from Babylon.
 
Neh 8:14 And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month:
Neh 8:15 And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written.
Neh 8:16 So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim.
Neh 8:17 And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Jeshua (which is Joshua) the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness.
Neh 8:18 Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner.
 
This celebration is a reminder of God’s faithfulness and protection.
 
All Jewish males were required to go to Jerusalem to appear before the Lord and their families usually went with them.
 
Many Jewish people still celebrate Sukkot today, by building and dwelling in temporary booths for eight days.
 
There are four special plants used to cover the booths, and they are the citron, the myrtle, the palm, and the willow.
 
Lev 23:39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath.
Lev 23:40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
 
Then, the elders came and took up the Ark out of the Tabernacle of David.
 
It was necessary to put a new lid on the Ark. It was about five hundred years old and when opened, nothing remained but the two tablets of stone from the time of Moses.
 
It originally contained two tablets that contained the Ten Commandments and Aaron’s rod that budded and a pot of manna.
 
Blame was put on the Philistines for the missing items.
 
So, the steps to the dedication included:
 
1) Placing in the treasury all the things dedicated by David. Solomon could have kept these riches of his father, and no one would have known but God, but Solomon honored the wishes of His father David.
 
2) Placing all the sacred vessels and furniture in their proper position.
 
3) The offering of the many sacrifices.
 
4) The priests carrying into the Most Holy Place the Ark of the Covenant.
 
5) As the priests came from the Most Holy Place and one hundred and twenty other priests standing east of the Altar blew their trumpets, the Levite choir burst into a song of praise and thanksgiving with cymbals and other musical instruments saying “For He is good; for His mercy endureth forever.
 
6) Then the cloud, a symbol of the Divine Presence and the Glory of God filled the house.
 
Let’s read the Scriptures.
 
2Ch 5:6 Also king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel that were assembled unto him before the ark, sacrificed sheep and oxen, which could not be told nor numbered for multitude.
2Ch 5:7 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, to the oracle of the house, into the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims:
2Ch 5:8 For the cherubims spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above.
2Ch 5:9 And they drew out the staves of the ark, that the ends of the staves were seen from the ark before the oracle; but they were not seen without. And there it is unto this day.
2Ch 5:10 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt.
 
We now know what happened in the dedication of the Temple so, let’s look at some other things.
 
Many today are concerned about the location of the Ark of the Covenant today.
 
We do not know for sure if the Ark remained at the Temple when Nebuchadnezzar plundered the Temple but what we do know when the vessels were brought back from Babylonian captivity the Ark of the Covenant was not mentioned.
 
Ezr 1:9 And this is the number of them: thirty chargers of gold, a thousand chargers of silver, nine and twenty knives,
Ezr 1:10 Thirty basons of gold, silver basons of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other vessels a thousand.
Ezr 1:11 All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them of the captivity that were brought up from Babylon unto Jerusalem.
 
The staves of the Ark were at least fifteen feet long, which was about the size of the Most Holy Place.
 
The staves were that long to give room for those men who carried the Ark leaving room to stay clear of the Ark.
 
The staves were withdrawn as far as they could to the back wall so they would not protrude in sight at the front.
 
The Ark had only the tablets of stone written by the finger of God at this time.
 
Exo 31:16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.
Exo 31:17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.
Exo 31:18 And he gave unto Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.
 
Remember it was Moses who had broken these two tablets.
 
Exo 34:1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.
 
Deu_10:2 And I will write on the tables the words that were in the first tables which thou brakest, and thou shalt put them in the ark.
 
There was something else that was with or in the Ark.
 
Deu_31:26 Take this book of the law, and put it in the side of the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, that it may be there for a witness against thee.
 
Probably the very same book, which (after having been some way misplaced) was found in the house of the Lord, in the days of Josiah, and publicly read by the king himself, for a witness against a people, who were then almost ripe for ruin.
 
On the side or On the inside, Some say there was a little chest fixed to the Ark for such things but it is not mentioned. Some say that this book was just placed inside the Ark. There was nothing but the stone tablets that were contained in the Ark.
 
This book was found later.
 
2Ch 34:14 And when they brought out the money that was brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found a book of the law of the LORD given by Moses.
2Ch 34:15 And Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of the LORD. And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan.
2Ch 34:16 And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word back again, saying, All that was committed to thy servants, they do it.
 
The Shekinah Glory of the Lord
 
2Ch 5:11 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place: (for all the priests that were present were sanctified, and did not then wait by course:
2Ch 5:12 Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:)
2Ch 5:13 It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, “For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever”: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD;
 
Once the Ark was in place God gave His stamp of approval!
 
So, it had been when Moses finished the Tabernacle, and so it was at Pentecost after the Lord Jesus began His Church, that the Holy Spirit came down in His mighty power.
 
God’s glory has to be the most wonderful sight we will ever see!
 
Notice all the priests were in white linen robes. Does this not make us think about the white robes in Heaven?
 
Rev_7:9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;
 
King Solomon now had all things in place and a platform had been erected about seven feet squared somewhat like a pulpit, so he was lifted up above the people to be seen as well as heard and it seems King Solomon acted as King and High Priest.
 
We see some typology here.
 
In reality, only King Jesus can be the true King and High priest when He returns to take us home and then sits upon His throne in Jerusalem.
 
Immediately after the priests had performed and withdrawn and the doors of the Temple were closed, the cloud of God’s Holy Presence and God’s Majestic Glory filled the Temple just as He had done when the Tabernacle of Moses was completed.
 
King Solomon was stunned:
 
1Ki 8:10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,
1Ki 8:11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.
1Ki 8:12 Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness.
 
Our true Holy God manifested His presence showing the public that he had accepted their labor of love in building this Temple.
 
*2Ch 5:14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.
 
A man of God said this beautified this Temple much more than all the gold which it was overlaid and all the precious stones that adorned it. Yet even that glory in comparison does not match the glory of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
 
God had not allowed King David to build this Temple but told him that his son Solomon would have the honor of building this Temple.
 
Then King Solomon began to pray.

2Ch 6:12  And he stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands: 
2Ch 6:13  For Solomon had made a brasen scaffold, of five cubits long, and five cubits broad, and three cubits high, and had set it in the midst of the court: and upon it he stood, and kneeled down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven, 
2Ch 6:14  And said, O LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee in the heaven, nor in the earth; which keepest covenant, and shewest mercy unto thy servants, that walk before thee with all their hearts: 
2Ch 6:15  Thou which hast kept with thy servant David my father that which thou hast promised him; and spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day.

And he continued therefore:
 
Amen

The Temple Solomon Built

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Solomon Built the Temple
 
Book of 1 Kings 5
 
 
One of the most important things we need to complete any building project successfully is to be committed to it.
 
We can accept the fact that King Solomon had little if any construction skills, but he now had great wisdom in all things.
 
What Solomon had was a humble spirit and he sought the Lord for His help.
 
The next thing that is needed is preparation.
 
Site preparation must be properly taken care of, and it begins with following the Word of God.

Then you must own the property you are building upon.

David first bought the threshing floor of Araunah:

2Sa_24:18  And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite.
2Sa_24:21  And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people.
2Sa_24:24  And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

Then David bought the entire area around the threshing floor.

1Ch 21:24  And king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without cost. 
1Ch 21:25  So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight. 

There should be no doubt who the Temple Mount belongs to.
 
Remember it was God who gave the dimensions and the details of this Temple to David mphasizing a solid foundation.
 
Luk 6:46 And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Luk 6:47 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:
Luk 6:48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.
Luk 6:49 But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.
 
King Solomon needed to be obedient to the Lord just as we all should be today!
 
This new Temple was to be a House of the Lord for the Lord’s people to worship Him.
 
This had been a dream of his father David for many years, and Solomon was committed to seeing it succeed.
 
Solomon’s most important task was to seek the Lord!
 
1Ki 5:2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
1Ki 5:3 Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet.
1Ki 5:4 But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.
 
King Hiram and King David had been great friends, and his son Huram wanted the same relationship with King Solomon.
 
In fact, this King Hiram had told his own son about the great God of Israel even though he was pagan and worshipped his own gods.
 
We should understand that God would not allow David to build this Temple of Worship because it would have sent the wrong message.
 
It would be like religions such as the Muslim who are forced to seek Mohammed and can never leave that religion with the threat of death if they do.
 
There is no personal relationship because there is no Allah.
 
Just as important, because David was protecting the cause of Israel in great battles with the enemies that surrounded Israel and he certainly did not have time to make such a commitment as Solomon was saying to Huram.
 
Israel was at peace all the time of King Solomon and he maintained a strong military presence in the regions.
 
To David God said: 22:8 But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.
 
This king of Tyre understood these things Solomon was saying.
 
When the Lord forbids us to do something He is serious about it!
 
King David had made this entire area to be at peace because of his conquest.
 
We could say that Israel was the honcho nation during the time of King Solomon.
 
Solomon said he had no adversaries nor was there any occurrence of rebellion to his rule.
 
In fact, the nation of Israel was very prosperous in the days of King Solomon.
 
We know that David spent time training Solomon.
 
It was Solomon who wrote the Book of Proverbs so we can see what he wrote about his father.
 
Pro 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding.
Pro 4:2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law.
Pro 4:3 For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother.
Pro 4:4 He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live.
Pro 4:5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth.
Pro 4:6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee.
Pro 4:7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
 
David did everything in his power to smooth the way of Solomon.
 
David drew up the plans for the Temple according to the plans God had given to him:
 
1Ch 28:11 Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of the mercy seat,
1Ch 28:12 And the pattern of all that he had by the spirit, of the courts of the house of the LORD, and of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the dedicated things:
 
David gave Solomon the funds to build the Temple:
 
1Ch 28:14 He gave of gold by weight for things of gold, for all instruments of all manner of service; silver also for all instruments of silver by weight, for all instruments of every kind of service:
 
David told Solomon that the plans for the Temple came from Jehovah:
 
1Ch 28:19 All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern.
 
And again, David encouraged his son:
 
1Ch 28:20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.
 
We can see that Solomon was a good student!
 
Solomon began to understand what his father was saying.
 
1Ki 5:5 And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build an house unto my name.
1Ki 5:6 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.
 
Solomon was committed to building the Temple his father David desired.
 
Solomon sought to honor the Lord by building a house of worship for the people of Israel.
 
If we do not learn anything else, we need to know that there needs to be a place to worship the Lord!
 
There needs to be set times so we can all gather together to encourage one another.
 
We will need to deal with this lost world.
 
Solomon renewed the relationship between Israel and Tyre which was Phoenicia and Solomon sought to establish a trade agreement between the two nations, and he did.
 
Solomon sought workers with skills that Israel did not know at this time.
 
Notice Solomon did not open the borders of Israel to just anybody, but Israel had a need for skilled laborers.
 
This should be a lesson for our nation.
 
Solomon knew he had no excuse to delay this work for the Lord and Israel.
 
When God calls us for a task it is time to say yes and get busy!
 
We need to yield to the call of God without hesitation.
 
The Bible explains this request to Huram from Solomon better in Second Chronicles:
 
2Ch 2:4 Behold, I build an house to the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to him, and to burn before him sweet incense, and for the continual shewbread, and for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the sabbaths, and on the new moons, and on the solemn feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance for ever to Israel.
2Ch 2:5 And the house which I build is great: for great is our God above all gods.
2Ch 2:6 But who is able to build him an house, seeing the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain him? who am I then, that I should build him an house, save only to burn sacrifice before him?
2Ch 2:7 Send me now therefore a man cunning to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and crimson, and blue, and that can skill to grave with the cunning men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father did provide.
2Ch 2:8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,
2Ch 2:9 Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.
2Ch 2:10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.
2Ch 2:11 Then Huram the king of Tyre answered in writing, which he sent to Solomon, Because the LORD hath loved his people, he hath made thee king over them.
 
We must realize that God cannot be contained in any nation but that God is bigger than our little world but He is also small enough to come into our hearts.
 
God has a purpose for each of us and God is still building upon His Church!
 
King Hiram agreed with Solomon and a pact was made between the two nations.
 
*1Ki 5:10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire.
1Ki 5:11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.
 
We see that Hiram gave this timber to Solomon and Solomon provided the food to feed these men while the work was taking place.
 
We can better understand that Solomon asked for cedar trees, fir trees which means cypress, and other timber that was long-lasting.
 
Solomon also needed an architect.
 
Hiram was glad to provide the things that Solomon requested.
 
We should not be confused the Phoenicians were Pagans.
 
These cities existed before Israel came into the Promised Land in most cases they worshipped Baal.
 
Baal means lord but he is identified with the false god Molech where children were sacrificed on his blazing arms.
 
Baal was also known as the Sun god and there are Pyramids and High places all around the world where Baal the Sun god was worshipped along with the Moon god, and they are still worshipped today under different names.
 
This is the reason most of these nations no longer exist today.
 
Hiram’s servants would cut the timber from the forest in Lebanon. Transport it to the Mediterranean Sea, form it into rafts, and guide it through the waters to the Sea Port of Joppa.
 
Tyre was over fifty miles from Joppa and Joppa was around thirty miles from Jerusalem.
 
This was no easy task we know because we have the problems our own military had in the Mediterranian Sea.

The Phoenicians were the masters of the sea in that day.
 
2Ch 2:8 Send me also cedar trees, fir trees, and algum trees, out of Lebanon: for I know that thy servants can skill to cut timber in Lebanon; and, behold, my servants shall be with thy servants,
2Ch 2:9 Even to prepare me timber in abundance: for the house which I am about to build shall be wonderful great.
2Ch 2:10 And, behold, I will give to thy servants, the hewers that cut timber, twenty thousand measures of beaten wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand baths of wine, and twenty thousand baths of oil.
 
Both men kept their agreements, and Solomon paid the wages of all these workers to make it worth their while.
 
Our lesson here is that we must do everything we can to seek peace and preserve peace throughout society without compromising the Word of God.
 
We need to make peace in our homes.
We need to make peace in our schools.
We need to make peace in our workplaces.
We need to treat everyone fair as we know our Lord Jesus did.
We should have peace in our Churches, we have the same Word of God. We do not need opinions, likes, dislikes, complaints, or murmurers among our members. Again, we have the same Word of God.
We should have peace in our government whose goal should be to take care of its people and protect our nation.
 
The word peace is used 429 times in the KJV Bible so peace is important to God, but may not always be possible.
 
Rom_12:18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.
 
There were also workers with stone at this same time.
 
1Ki 5:18 And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders did hew them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones to build the house.
 
This stone cutting was started before the death of King David, and it was time consuming.
 
David also began gathering many of the supplies needed for the Temple.
 
1Ch 22:2 And David commanded to gather together the strangers that were in the land of Israel; and he set masons to hew wrought stones to build the house of God.
1Ch 22:3 And David prepared iron in abundance for the nails for the doors of the gates, and for the joinings; and brass in abundance without weight;
1Ch 22:4 Also cedar trees in abundance: for the Zidonians and they of Tyre brought much cedar wood to David.
1Ch 22:5 And David said, Solomon my son is young and tender, and the house that is to be builded for the LORD must be exceeding magnifical, of fame and of glory throughout all countries: I will therefore now make preparation for it. So David prepared abundantly before his death.
 
The Splendor of what is called Solomon’s Temple began to come to life.
 
Work began in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign.
 
We can see this was a major undertaking with the tools that were available on that day.
 
In fact, many of those large stones and the cutting of them is not really understood today how they were able to do such things with just manual labor.
 
These stones were cut, squared, shaped, and dressed to fit together perfectly without mortar.
 
Our lesson is no matter what we do for the Lord, do it right while also making a contribution to society.
  
*1Ki 6:12 Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:
1Ki 6:13 And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
1Ki 6:14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it.
 
It had been four hundred and eighty years since a group of slaves led by Moses, had left Egypt searching for the land promised to Abraham.
 
This would have been around 966 BC, so the Hebrews left Egypt around 1446 BC.
 
All the materials were assembled in Jerusalem on the Temple Mount without the use of construction hand tools axes and hammers and such tool made of iron.
 
1Ki 6:7 And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.
 
1Ki 6:9 So he built the house, and finished it; and covered the house with beams and boards of cedar.
 
Then God gave Solomon a challenge and a promise.
 
It appears to me as I read this that the stonework was first completed and then the Temple was covered with lumber and this lumber was gold plated.
 
1Ki 6:22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.
 
In the end, God said this was a worldly sanctuary and cannot compare to our Heavenly sanctuary.
 
Heb 9:1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.
 
Heb 9:11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
 
Any place of worship today simply means God is identifying with His people so it becomes a House of God.
 
God is certainly “gracious” but this does not mean it is a light thing to come into the presence of the Lord.
 
We should be reverent in the House of God and God will show up.
 
Today the body of each believer becomes the House of God and we are to honor the name of the Lord who dwells within us at all times and not just while we are in His House of worship.
 
Those large stones teach us of a solid foundation which is in Christ Jesus.
 
If our lives are not built upon Jesus Christ we are doomed to destruction.
 
Without Jesus Christ, we are separated from God and doomed!
 
Without God, there is no hope, not in this world or the next!
 
We should also understand that just being in a Church building is not enough. God only looks upon those with a pure heart as we saw in last week’s lesson.
 
A wicked person entering a church building is still a person with a wicked heart and will remain that way until they claim the Lord Jesus Christ and repent of their old life.
 
Many today do not want to repent but maintain their sinful ways and sin is according to the Word of God and not public opinion.
 
God created us to have fellowship with Him, but He cannot look upon sin and, in His wisdom, He sent the Lord Jesus to pay our sin debt and if we accept this fact then God will deal with us His own children!
 
God gave us free will to decide this on our own!
 
Amen

Asking for the Wisdom of God

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Solomon Received Wisdom

Book of 2 Chronicles Chapter 1 verses 7 through 12

As we begin this first lesson in the Book of 2 Chronicles, we know that King David had died after ruling all the tribes of Israel for a total of forty years.

Seven years over Judah and Benjamin and thirty-three years over all of Israel.

God had decided that Solomon, the son of David and Bathsheba, would now lead all of Israel after their marriage.

The first act of Solomon was to take secure control of the throne of Israel.

We know that Adonijah another son of David was trying to take control of Israel with the help of some rich and powerful leaders, but he had failed.

Solomon’s second act as the new King of Israel was to seek the Lord, worship Him, and pray for the wisdom to be King.

The Tabernacle was now in Gibeon, but the Ark of the Covenant was in Jerusalem because God had chosen Jerusalem to be the place where worship would continue.

King David had built a special Tabernacle to house the Ark of the Covenant.

I believe that this tabernacle is mentioned in prophecy.

Isa_16:5 And in mercy shall the throne be established: and he shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging, and seeking judgment, and hasting righteousness.

Amo_9:11 In that day will I raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen, and close up the breaches thereof; and I will raise up his ruins, and I will build it as in the days of old:

Act_15:16 After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:

Solomon knew where the Tabernacle was located with the Ark of the Covenant, but the Brazen Altar was at Gibeon, and this is the place where sacrifices were to be made according to Levitical Law

The Brazen Altar was the one place where all sacrifices were to be made, and Gibeon was only six and one-half miles from Jerusalem.

The Brazen Altar is in fact a type of Mount Calvary where our Lord Jesus was sacrificed for our sins.

God had said if anyone offers a sacrifice and brings it not unto the door of the Tabernacle of the Congregation, offering it to the Lord then that blood would be applied to that man and he would be cut off.

Lev 17:3 What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp,
Lev 17:4 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people:

King Solomon knew this law applied to him as it did to all the children of Israel.

King Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings upon this Brazen Altar.

It is the night after the day that King Solomon did this that the Lord appeared to King Solomon in a dream.

*2Ch 1:7 In that night did God appear unto Solomon, and said unto him, Ask what I shall give thee.

We first see that God knew Solomon needed some guidance just as we all do.

We will also see that God will test King Solomon even though God knew what Solomon would ask Him for.

Solomon had brought all the leadership of Israel and the judges with him to Gibeon.

This included all the heads of the military.

It was important for all the leaders of Israel to know that King Solomon would serve the Lord God of Israel.

What a shame that our leaders will not do this because they reject the God of Truth.

They claim God and reject His Words, and it does not work like that.

Now our nation allows so-called scientists who boast of superior insight into the nature of things to direct our nation.

Many scientists assert that their investigations prove that the teachings of Scripture are false, but real facts show that the Bible has no controversy with real science.

Because Solomon and those leaders acknowledged their need for the Lord, God accepted their worship through those sacrificial offerings.

Today God accepts our worship, if we are sincere because the Lord Jesus sacrificed Himself, and the veil in the Temple at Jerusalem was torn from top to bottom and we can go directly to the Lord in our time of need or any other time.

It was important that the veil was torn from top to bottom. If it had been torn from bottom to top, it would have meant that man had done it

God appeared to King Solomon: 1Ki 3:5 In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.

God appeared to Solomon in a dream that was much more than a dream.

This was one of the more significant dreams in the Bible.

God revealed Himself in various ways in the Old Testament.

There are many places where God spoke audibly to people.

To Abraham: Gen 18:13 And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old?

Gen 18:17 And the LORD said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing which I do;

To Moses: Exo 19:9 And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD.

To Isaiah: Isa 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.

God also revealed Himself through dreams as we see here with King Solomon.

Whether it was more like a dream or a vision it was interactive and it was real and it honored God.

God spoke to Solomon and Solomon spoke to God and prophecy was fulfilled.

When this is mentioned in the Book of 1 Kings we can see that it is not Jehovah who responded to Solomon but it was Elohim.

Jehovah appeared but Elohim spoke.

When we hear from the Lord Jesus Christ, He is speaking the words of His Father.

In this passage here we see that Elohim appeared to Solomon.

So, even though the Ark was not at Gibeon, God still met with Solomon and talked to him.

We see that even in the times of the Old Testament, God made it clear that He was not restricted to the Holy of Holies or the Ark of the Covenant.

The Holy of Holies was a place where God met the High Priest of Israel.

God said: “Ask what I shall give thee”.

We can take this to mean that Solomon could have asked for anything.

We can just imagine how we would respond if the Almighty God asked us this same question.

We know that we can ask for anything that is in the will of God for our lives, and He will give those things to us.

What did Jesus say?

Mat_7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Mat_21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.

Jhn_16:23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.

Now it does not really say that God would have given Solomon anything he asked for, because God knew before Solomon asked, what he was going to ask for.

We can be sure that God’s response had nothing to do with those one thousand animals that were sacrificed.

It was because Solomon’s heart was surrendered to God at this time!

This is the key to answered prayer! Having our hearts surrendered to the Lord.

Joh 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

*2Ch 1:8 And Solomon said unto God, Thou hast shewed great mercy unto David my father, and hast made me to reign in his stead.
2Ch 1:9 Now, O LORD God, let thy promise unto David my father be established: for thou hast made me king over a people like the dust of the earth in multitude.

It should be very clear that God knows what is in our hearts before we ask of Him!

When we ask of God, we must have faith that He can supply what we ask for or we will never receive gifts from God.

God is not only able, but He is also willing to give us anything, but it must be in His will for us.

God had shown more than great mercy to David, God had also made David a rich man.

Why might we ask?

1Ki 3:6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
1Ki 3:7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.

David had left all those riches to be used to build a Temple for God in Jerusalem.

At this time Solomon was certainly not a child according to our standards.

He was probably between the ages of seventeen to twenty-two.

The one thing Solomon knew was that he was personally inadequate to fulfill God’s promises to his father David.

The nation of Israel was too great.
There were too many people for him to govern effectively.
The task that was lying before him was just too overwhelming.

Solomon felt helpless.

Solomon likened himself to be a small child.

Solomon knew he lacked the wisdom to be King of Israel.

The laws of Moses stated that Israel had to have a king who was humble and who would remain humble.

A king was required to read the law of God daily and follow it.

Deu 17:18 And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:
Deu 17:19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them:
Deu 17:20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

No king was to feel he was superior to his fellow citizens.

We know that this is a problem in the last few governments that we have.

Those ultra-liberal Senators and Congressmen men and women treated us as inferiors!

Solomon knew he needed God’s help.

This is exactly where God wants each of us.

The Lord Jesus put it this way: Jhn_15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

We have found this to be very true!

What was God’s promise to David?

2Sa 7:12 And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
2Sa 7:13 He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
2Sa 7:14 I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men:
2Sa 7:15 But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
2Sa 7:16 And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.

We know this prophecy did not only concern Solomon but more importantly our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the only one who could fulfill this prophecy.

What did Solomon need?

*2Ch 1:10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who can judge this thy people, that is so great?

What is the difference between wisdom and knowledge?

**By knowledge Solomon meant the ability to gather and understand facts.

By definition knowledge is a clear and certain perception of things that exist.

We have no knowledge of things that do not exist, but God has perfect knowledge of all His creation so human knowledge is very limited.

Knowing these things then keep in mind that ignorance is the curse of God.

We know that Jesus Christ alone possesses all the knowledge of God.

**Wisdom is the ability to apply the facts that are learned.

By definition, wisdom is the right use of knowledge.

Wisdom in fact is one of the names of Jesus Christ: 1Co_1:24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

We should know that Solomon became king because God was rewarding his father, King David.

What Solomon needed the most was the ‘Grace” of God.

We see that Solomon did not have a clue on how to rule a kingdom.

When we admit what we are, dumb sheep, then God has something to work with.

*2Ch 1:11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thine heart, and thou hast not asked riches, wealth, or honour, nor the life of thine enemies, neither yet hast asked long life; but hast asked wisdom and knowledge for thyself, that thou mayest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king:

And God speaks.

What did God tell the Prophet Samuel before this all began?

1Sa 16:7 But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.

The word heart is used 833 times in the KJV Bible.

The heart is the center of the physical, mental, and spiritual life of all humans!

It is the heart that is at the center of our physical life.

Act 14:17 Nevertheless he left not himself without witness, in that he did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.

The heart and our mind are closely connected.

It is thought that our heart is the seat of our intelligence.

Pro_8:5 O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart.

Sometimes we think with our heart.

Pro 23:7 For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he: Eat and drink, saith he to thee; but his heart is not with thee.

We ponder things in our hearts.

Luk 2:19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

We see the heart and mind connected.

Our emotions are tied to our hearts.

God can see into our hearts, and He knows who his children are and those who are not and never will be.

Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
Rom 1:25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Now we cannot read our own thoughts into this.

This is something God knows, and we cannot know!

The heart is the center of our spiritual life!

Job said: Job 27:6 My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

It is our heart that will condemn us, but it is also in our heart where we feel the power of God.

1Jn 3:19 And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him.
1Jn 3:20 For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.
1Jn 3:21 Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.

It is because our heart is at the root of all our problems this is the place where God does His greatest work!

Rom 2:14 For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
Rom 2:15 Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;)
Rom 2:16 In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel.

It is the heart where God sows His seed (the Word of God).

Mat 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

Rom 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Rom 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

It is in the heart where God will make His home within us.

2Co 1:21 Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
2Co 1:22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.

This is why if God wants to know us, all He has to do is look into our hearts.

This is why we can witness for the Lord.

Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

This is what God saw in the heart of Solomon.

*2Ch 1:12 Wisdom and knowledge is granted unto thee; and I will give thee riches, and wealth, and honour, such as none of the kings have had that have been before thee, neither shall there any after thee have the like.

There is a principle in the Bible that we have trouble understanding and the Lord Jesus uses it: Mat_25:29 For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath.

We see that King Solomon had enough wisdom to offer up a wise prayer, so God increased his wisdom as the answer to his prayer.

We see that all those who make this world their end will come up short in the gifts of God.

Those who make it to the “Glory World” will not only obtain a mansion in God’s home, but God will give us enough in this world that we live and take care of our families.

Yes, God gave Solomon riches and wealth and honor, but these things had another purpose.

The truth is, if we put the Lord and His ways first in our lives then, good things can happen.

It means following God’s will for our lives, then blessings will come our way!

God freely gives His wisdom if we will just ask Him.

Jas 1:5 If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

Amen

When The Lord Jesus is King

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Reign of the Messiah

Book of Psalms Chapter 72

No doubt that Psalm 72 was written about Solomon the son of David but in reality, the Holy Spirit caused it to be written of Israel’s last and greatest King, which is the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

David becomes a prophet in this Psalm.

What do we know about the reign of the Messiah? It has not happened yet.

During the early centuries of the Church there were many groups that denied the humanity of Jesus Christ.

Today, it is in the reverse, the man Jesus is recognized, but there is a denial of His deity.

People believe that Christ was either a liar, or a lunatic, or He is LORD like He says He is.

Jesus Christ is God and not simply God-Like!

Jesus Christ is absolutely equal with God the Father in His person and in His work.

The Lord Jesus Christ is all that God is, to possess the whole fullness of the attributes which make God, God!

Any attack on the deity of Jesus Christ is an attack on the bedrock of Christianity.

I am tired of seeing my Savior mocked in this world.

Heb 1:8  But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. 

It is a fundamental truth of Scripture that only God is to be worshiped.

Even Satan knows this is the truth!

Mat 4:10  Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 

It is the Trinity of God that is the Lord Jesus Christ:

2Co 13:14  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

Prophecy says that the Messiah would be King.

Gen 49:10  The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. 

There will be a people ready to be ruled by the Messiah.

2Sa 7:16  And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. 

God the Father announced the making of His Son to be King.

Psa 2:6  Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.

The Lord Jesus Christ will be the government of this world!

Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. 

Isa 9:7  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. 

The three offices of the Messiah which are, Prophet, Priest, and King will be fulfilled in the Lord Jesus Christ!

As a Prophet, the Lord Jesus was involved with revealing the salvation message of God.

As a Priest, His work was as an Intercessor, and His saving work.

As King, He fulfill the promises to Israel and He will rule the entire earth.

*****Psa 72:1 Give the king thy judgments, O God, and thy righteousness unto the king’s son. 

As King David lay on his death bed, he had this prayer for his son by asking God to make him a righteous ruler.

One of the king’s most important duties was to judge disputes and then administer justice.

If Solomon would govern according to the Word of God, the Lord would bless him and his nation’s people.

This same prayer holds true to every ruler, every king, and every president of every nation even today!

God is the source of all “judgment”!

It should be noted that Solomon prayed this same prayer for himself.

1Ki 3:9  Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a people? 

We know that a society cannot exist without laws and these laws are to be expressed and enforced and whoever does this is the ruler but this is just a part of what is needed to govern any people.

*****Psa 72:2  He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment. 

Psa 72:3  The mountains shall bring peace to the people, and the little hills, by righteousness. 

Psa 72:4  He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor.

It is obvious that the courts and prosecutors of today are not interested with righteousness!

It is obvious today that our courts are not fair and impartial but yield to the politics of today!

We should also understand that the children of Israel belong to God just as the Church belongs to God.

The Church is bought and paid for with the Blood of Jesus Christ.

We should also understand that peace will never come to this world because leaders seek their own fortunes rather than seeking the good will of those they were elected to serve.

In old times most of the poor were not that way because of laziness or would not work.

We know this has changed today.

There are still some who are poor for many reasons but there are also many who refuse to work and would rather live off the taxpayer.

In the day of the Kings the poor were powerless to defend themselves and were taken advantage of by greedy and wicked people.

These same greedy and wicked people are going after the middle class today and the middle class is becoming powerless to defend themselves.

It is easy to see that it is the rich who are the cause of the oppression of the poor and they want to keep it that way.

It is a fact that in the day the Jesus Christ rules this earth from Jerusalem the oppression of the poor will end.

It is uncalled for today, but the greedy rich just cannot get enough riches to satisfy them!

Peace can be said to be the absence of fear of the threat of harm along with a sense of security.

We do not have this in America today and it is because of greedy politicians, who always seem to have a better way, but it never turns out that way!

When King Jesus sits upon the throne of David there will be great changes.

*****Psa 72:5  They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations.

It is this passage where we begin to see that this Psalm was not just about King Solomon because his life would be similar to the life expectancy we have today.

It is King Jesus in whom we should have a godly fear of throughout time as it we see it today.

The sun and the moon will endure until God brings them to an end and it is only God who can live through all the generations of mankind and forever.

Only God can do these things. It was Solomon’s job to make sure all the people of his kingdom understood this, just as it is the job of every national leader to do today.

We see where this world is failing!

You see, for as long as the course of nature last, we are to fear the Lord.

God promised eternal dominion to the house of David.

Since the Lord Jesus as a man was a descendant of the House of David, and because He is God then these things apply to the Messiah.

Since we are in the family of the Messiah then these things apply to the Body of Christ.

King Solomon was to provide security for God’s people.

King Jesus will also provide security in His Kingdom. He will rule with a rod of iron.

He would rescue the needy.

He would rescue the poor and those who are afflicted, and their children.

These are the ones that the world takes advantage of.

These are the same ones that this government we have now, have taken advantage of.

They have tried to keep the poor, poor so that they will always need the government to help them.

This is why the gates of America have been thrown open for the world to enter so even more people will become dependent upon the government to support them.

This is the way a certain party is trying to stay in power.

The Messiah came to this earth to put a stop to these things.

The Messiah came to rescue the needy and the poor, all those who are Spiritually poor.

David prayed that his son would crush all those who are so cruel in this world.

*****Psa 72:6  He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth. 

We already know there is a great famine for the Word of God today.

2Ti_4:3  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

2Ti_4:4  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Eze 34:23  And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 

Eze 34:24  And I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it. 

Eze 34:25  And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. 

Eze 34:26  And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.

Deu 32:2  My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: 

Deu 32:3  Because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.

David called on his son to be true to Jesus Christ.

The Lord Jesus will enforce righteousness upon this earth when He sits as King of the World!

*****Psa 72:7  In his days shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth. 

Does anyone here know how long the moon that we see nightly is going to flourish? I do not either because only God knows.

Isa 11:4  But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. 

Isa 11:5  And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

All those who are with Christ during His Millennial Reign upon this earth will enjoy lives that are full, and free of fear and oppression.

If the Lord Jesus Christ is going to save us from all these things, then these are the things that are going to get worse especially during the time of the Antichrist.

Keep in mind this is after the Rapture of the Church and the Church will come down again to this earth during the time Christ sits as King of this world and remain the God of all creation.

*****Psa 72:8  He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. 

Psa 72:9  They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust. 

What was the Kingdom of Solomon?

1Ki 4:21  And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life. 

Notice Solomon ruled over the land of the Philistines also at this time.

As we apply this to King Jesus:

Isa 60:4  Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. 

Isa 60:5  Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. 

Isa 60:6  The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the LORD. 

Isa 60:7  All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. 

Isa 60:8  Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? 

Isa 60:9  Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, unto the name of the LORD thy God, and to the Holy One of Israel, because he hath glorified thee. 

Isa 60:10  And the sons of strangers shall build up thy walls, and their kings shall minister unto thee: for in my wrath I smote thee, but in my favour have I had mercy on thee. 

*****Psa 72:10  The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts. 

Psa 72:11  Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him. 

David prayed that Solomon would be recognized as the world’s leader the sovereign ruler over all the earth.

He asked that God would cause all rulers to pay tribute to Solomon.

As David prayed for his son, he also prophesied of the Messiah.

Solomon did establish an extensive kingdom but he did not rule to the ends of the earth.

Solomon was not King of all kings.

Only the Lord Jesus Christ will fully answer this prayer of David!

Only the Lord Jesus Christ will reign forever over all the earth!

Zec 9:9  Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. 

Zec 9:10  And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. 

Psa 2:7  I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. 

Psa 2:8  Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. 

Luk 1:33  And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

King Jesus will rule this world just as He rules everything that we see and know about. He will rule all His creation.

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God. 

Joh 1:3  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. 

Joh 1:4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 

Joh 1:5  And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

David then prays that Solomon will be compassionate toward the people.

*****Psa 72:12  For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper. 

Psa 72:13  He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy. 

Psa 72:14  He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight. 

When is the last time we have seen our leaders be compassionate to all the people?

This is when we know we have a true leader.

Did you know being compassionate to the people is not one of the things that our President is to do.

An American President is to keep our nation safe and make sure the Constitution is being implemented and is the guide to our laws.

If our leaders would show compassion to all the people of our great nation instead of picking out certain groups to show compassion, if you can call it that, to certain groups and cause division in all the rest, our nation would be a better place.

A true leader will deliver all who cry to him who are in need.

These would be those who are poor, oppressed, and helpless beyond their fault.

He is to deliver those who suffer due to circumstances beyond their control.

Most of the problems where people suffer today is because our leaders have made laws that cause friction in the people.

A good leader would deliver those who are oppressed who are law abiding people.

A good leaders would not take away our freedoms that are guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

A good leader would save the people from oppression and stop their adversaries who only deceive and defraud the people.

An unrighteous leader would view the needy with contempt, seeing them as a burden to society and worthless.

Why is our nation faltering? It is because no one wants a righteous leader!

Even Solomon was not a righteous leader many of his days because he taxed the people so he could live an extravagant life.

God told Israel these things about a king:

Deu 17:15  Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother. 

Deu 17:16  But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way. 

Deu 17:17  Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold. 

Deu 17:18  And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: 

Deu 17:19  And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them: 

Deu 17:20  That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel. 

Solomon ignored all these laws of God just as most all kings have done even presidents.

But the Lord Jesus Christ was innocent of any wrong doing!

Israel became a rich nation but it was just like today.

The rich got richer and the poor renamed poor and the middle class paid most of the taxes.

David prophesied of King Jesus as no one else could meet the qualifications that God had set in His Laws.

The Jews had six hundred and thirteen laws besides these things that God added to kings.

The Lord Jesus Christ perfectly portrayed the compassionate, sacrificial heart of our Savior because He cannot be different from what He is!

He is still this same Savior today with these same characteristics!

Because of Jesus our souls can be saved from a Spiritual death which means an eternal separation from God in Hell.

The Lord Jesus is soon returning to claim our bodies as well!

Solomon did become the richest man in the world, but a lot of it was wasted when He could have done more for Israel such as tax relief.

*****Psa 72:15  And he shall live, and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba: prayer also shall be made for him continually; and daily shall he be praised. 

Psa 72:16  There shall be an handful of corn in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon: and they of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth. 

Psa 72:17  His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. 

Verse 15 is hard to understand but it could mean “God save the King”.

People could not only greet him in the customary way, but bring gifts to him and they would pray for him.

Besides the gifts, we still do this for our own leaders.

The gift we can give is to be obedient to the laws of the land that do not go against the Word of God.

A good king would be the source of happiness and prosperity and there will never be but one good king and that is King Jesus.

Another prayer would be for the fertility of the land.

“May there be an abundance of corn in the land upon the top of the mountains?”

“May the fruit rustle like Lebanon”.

“May men flourish out of the city like the grass of the earth.”

This would be praying for the prosperity for the people of the kingdom.

These would be the things that the Lord Jesus will do after He has destroyed the earth. He will make all things new and the earth will again be like it was in the Garden of Eden.

Hos 14:5  I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. 

Hos 14:6  His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive tree, and his smell as Lebanon. 

Hos 14:7  They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.

Isa 27:6  He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit. 

There will also be a conversion of the Jews.

Psa 92:12  The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 

Psa 92:13  Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. 

Psa 92:14  They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing; 

Psa 92:15  To shew that the LORD is upright: he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him. 

Only the Lord Jesus fits the picture painted by verse seventeen:

Psa 45:17  I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever. 

Eph 3:13  Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 

Eph 3:14  For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 

Eph 3:15  Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 

Eph 3:16  That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 

Eph 3:17  That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 

Eph 3:18  May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 

Eph 3:19  And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 

And blessed be the Lord God:

*****Psa 72:18  Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. 

Psa 72:19  And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory; Amen, and Amen. 

Psa 72:20  The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended. 

When the Messiah sits on the throne of David during the Millennial Kingdom the whole earth will be filled with God’s glory.

Isa 11:9  They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. 

Isa 11:10  And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious. 

Hab 2:14  For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

The Lord did wondrous things as the God of Israel by delivering them from bondage.

The Lord did wondrous things for the Church as he delivered us all from the bondage of Satan.

He did these things because His mercy endures forever!

It is our duty to praise God for what He has done for us and Israel will soon find this same thing out.

It is our honor to praise God.

It is our honor to meet each week in the House of our God to offer to Him our praise.

We will do this in Heaven, we just as well get in the practice here on earth!

It is our duty and our pleasure to honor our God, the Lord Jesus Christ!

It is only the lord who can do these wondrous things and does them because He loves us!

Me and my brother Mike used to talk about being saved and we would refer to this passage in the Book of James.

Jas 5:19  Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; 

Jas 5:20  Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins. 

Our sins, as terrible as they were now are all blotted out in God’s records in Heaven!

Mike is in Heaven now and I owe it to the Lord to spend the rest of my days serving Him!

This was David’s dying prayer for his son Solomon, but the Holy Spirit used this same prayer to prophecy of the Messiah, King Jesus.

Amen

Planning for the Temple of Solomon

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

David’s Wise Counsel

Book of 1 Chronicles Chapter 22

At the end of our last lesson we know that after David bought the threshing floor of Ornan, turned it into an altar and he sacrificed to the Lord to stop the plague that the Lord had placed on Israel.

2Sa 24:24 And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

After buying the threshing floor from Ornan, King David then bought that parcel of land that is now known as the Temple Mount.

1Ch 21:15 And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

1Ch 21:18 Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jebusite.

1Ch 21:25 So David gave to Ornan for the place six hundred shekels of gold by weight.

We can see that there were two separate transactions for the place where Solomon built the Temple that was intended to be a House of Prayer for all of Israel.

We also know that the Muslim have built a false temple that is known as the Dome of the Rock built right upon the threshing floor of Ornan that belongs to the nation of Israel because it was a place given to the Lord by King David.

For all intents and purposes, the Lord has the threshing floor of Ornan safe and secure and protected and preserved by a building provided for by the Muslims.

There is always a purpose behind everything that the Lord does!

These things cannot be denied!

1Ch 22:1 Then David said, This is the house of the LORD God, and this is the altar of the burnt offering for Israel.

The Lord would not allow David to build this House of Prayer because it would have sent the wrong message, but Solomon David’s son, would build this House of God.

*1Ch 22:6 Then he called for Solomon his son, and charged him to build an house for the LORD God of Israel.

We should understand that as fathers we do not have the right to dictate the career path of our sons or daughters.

God in His wisdom has given us all the freedom of choice in our lives.

We can, as fathers and mothers, recommend a path we would love for our children to follow.

The best thing that we can do is to be a good example to our children and pray that they learn from the mistakes that we have made in our lives so that they will not make the same mistakes that we made.

If we have been wise fathers, then maybe we can provide the means by which our sons and our daughters may carry out our purpose and some friends to help him in it.

A wise father and mother can largely shape the influences under which our children grow up!

King David could not build a Temple for the worship of the Lord but Solomon could, and King David began assembling most all the materials that would be needed, for the Lord had provided King David with the plans to build such a Temple and the finances to do so.

*1Ch 22:7 And David said to Solomon, My son, as for me, it was in my mind to build an house unto the name of the LORD my God:
1Ch 22:8 But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.

As far as meetings go, this is the most important meeting that Solomon would have in all the days of his life!

This was not David trying to tell Solomon how to live his life.

When David was made King of Israel, the nation was weak militarily, and economically and politically.

Solomon would now inherit a kingdom that had a solid foundation.

You see, we live in a land that is becoming weak militarily, and becoming weak economically, and weak politically but as the children of God, we will inherit the things of our King Jesus that is built upon a solid foundation.

Luk_6:48 He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

In the time of David, he did not have time to build upon the infrastructure of Israel for battling with Israel’s enemies, but Solomon would inherit a kingdom that was at peace and the enemies of Israel would not be prone to attack Israel.

He could take on worthy projects and the Temple of God should be first on his lists and David would be gathering the building materials for him and would give him the plans for the building of the Temple, which came from Jehovah.

The Temple would never have been a proper place of worship if it were built by bloody hands!

We could say the same thing about the Muslims places of worship today.

The builder of any place to worship the Living God, must be a man of peace and a saver of life and not a destroyer of life!

Luk 9:56 For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.

We can see that only the Lord Jesus Christ meets these requirements and it is the Lord Jesus Christ who builds all the Temples of God today!

We will see many times Solomon as a type of Jesus Christ.

Why was King David giving this request to his son Solomon?

*1Ch 22:8 But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, Thou hast shed blood abundantly, and hast made great wars: thou shalt not build an house unto my name, because thou hast shed much blood upon the earth in my sight.
1Ch 22:9 Behold, a son shall be born to thee, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies round about: for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his days.

1) David had a burning desire to personally build a Temple to worship Jehovah.

2) Jehovah would not allow David to Him such a Temple due to the way he had lived his life.

3) David shared to his son Solomon that Jehovah had chosen Him to be the next King of Israel and for Solomon to build this Temple.

Remember all of David’s sons who were born before Solomon had become worthless human beings who had no cause to change their ways and two of them had died in their wickedness.

God would give him a son who would be a man of peace, a man free from enemies and warfare.

For David, Solomon was this son, but we know that it is the Lord Jesus Christ who is the true fulfillment of this promise made to David!

What had God said?

“I will give peace and quietness unto Israel in his day”:

*1Ch 22:10 He shall build an house for my name; and he shall be my son, and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever.

These words were never about Solomon!

These words were about the Lord Jesus Christ and are still in our future.

The days of Solomon were at peace until he had finished the construction of the Temple, but just as soon as Solomon began to turn his back on God those days of peace ended.

Remember Solomon had over seven hundred wives and he was pulled into false religion by them.

1Ki 11:5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
1Ki 11:6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
1Ki 11:7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.

Peace began to fade away and Solomon’s enemies began to show up.

1Ki 11:23 And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah:

1Ki 11:26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon’s servant, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.

Jehovah does not say things that are not true!

In the days of the Millennial reign of the Lord Jesus Christ, there will be true peace in this world for one thousand years, for the Lord Jesus will rule with a “rod of iron”.

Moses was the first man of importance who had a rod, a wooden staff sometimes called the “rod of God”.

Exo 4:20 And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.

The brother of Moses, Aaron, was the one that bloomed. A dry stick came to life, which was a type of the nation of Israel but it could also be said to be a type of the lost come to the new life, that Born Again life by the Lord Jesus Christ.

Num 17:8 And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds.

Aaron’s rod was placed inside the Ark of the Covenant to save for future generations.

Heb 9:4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

But it was another Son of David and not Solomon that would one day rule this world with a rod of iron.

A rod then is the symbol of power and authority!

Psa 2:9 Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.
Psa 2:10 Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
Psa 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Psa 2:12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

Rev_12:5 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.
Rev_19:15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

These things are still in our own future for the Church must first called out of this world and shortly after this there will be seven years of tribulation with the last three and a half of those years being terrible until the Lord Jesus returns to put down all rebellion.

Then the Lord Jesus will sit on the throne of His Father David and these things written here will come to be true!

And we know that wise King Solomon did not ever build a true house in the name of Jehovah, and the throne of Solomon did not last forever!

These things the Lord Jesus did!

1 Co_6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?

Then the Lord will remove His Church before the Tribulation years begin.

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1Th 4:15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Then there will be those years of tribulation.

Mat_24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

The Lord will put down the rebellion upon this earth and then He will sit upon the throne of His father David, and not of the throne of Solomon.

Because David’s heart was for the Lord and Solomon’s heart was for his wives!

Luk_1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

Solomon’s job was to build a worldly Temple for the worship of Jehovah that was supposed be a House of Prayer for all the people of Israel.

So, David completes his prayer and his blessing for his son Solomon.

We know that Moses and Jacob gave dying blessings which were prophetical, and so, would be this blessing from King David.

When we have communion, it is said that we are partaking of the “Cup of the Lord’s blessing”.

*1Ch 22:11 Now, my son, the LORD be with thee; and prosper thou, and build the house of the LORD thy God, as he hath said of thee.
1Ch 22:12 Only the LORD give thee wisdom and understanding, and give thee charge concerning Israel, that thou mayest keep the law of the LORD thy God.

The Almighty Living God did give these things to Solomon.

Solomon became the richest most prosperous man in the world.

Solomon became the wisest man in the world, accept for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Solomon became the most understanding man in the world in his days.

But Solomon did not keep the Law of God all his days!

One of the most important things that we can learn from the Word of God is discernment!

It is discernment that enables us to judge what is the correct and proper way to act in our everyday lives!

The Bible says we must guide every decision we make with discretion.

Psa 112:5 A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.

And our enemies cannot stand it when the Word of God is always right!

Psa 112:10 The wicked shall see it, and be grieved; he shall gnash with his teeth, and melt away: the desire of the wicked shall perish.

Our lives will be so much better if we are obedient to all the Word of God!

In fact, how long we will get to spend time with our families will depend on how well we keep the Word of God!

Pro 3:1 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
Pro 3:2 For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.

David told his son Solomon that it was his duty to build that first Temple as a place to worship.

David then told his son Solomon that he had already purchased the building materials for this Temple.

David had already assembled a great work force who were already working upon those great marble stones and the timber that would be needed.

Solomon’s duty was to supervise the construction of the Temple by following God’s plan and put this plan into action.

1Ch 22:16 Of the gold, the silver, and the brass, and the iron, there is no number. Arise therefore, and be doing, and the LORD be with thee.

The greatest thing we can give back to the Lord after the salvation gifts He has given to us, is obedience to the Word of God!

David had more children than Absalom and Amnon, and David commanded all the princes of Israel to help his son Solomon.

There were also each tribe of the sons of Jacob that had princes.

1Ch 28:1 And David assembled all the princes of Israel, the princes of the tribes, and the captains of the companies that ministered to the king by course, and the captains over the thousands, and captains over the hundreds, and the stewards over all the substance and possession of the king, and of his sons, with the officers, and with the mighty men, and with all the valiant men, unto Jerusalem.

*1Ch 22:17 David also commanded all the princes of Israel to help Solomon his son, saying,
1Ch 22:18 Is not the LORD your God with you? and hath he not given you rest on every side? for he hath given the inhabitants of the land into mine hand; and the land is subdued before the LORD, and before his people.

Before David died, he issued a private charge to his son Solomon, but he also issued a private charge to all the leaders and the princes of the twelve tribes, to help Solomon to build the Temple we know as Solomon’s Temple.

God had certainly been with all of Israel the days David was King of Israel.

God had certainly given them peace throughout all the land and had subjected their enemies under the rule of Israel.

In a way, these tribal leaders were heavily obligated because of the blessings down through the years of David’s rule.

In comparison, just as David challenged the leaders of his day, we the Church are challenged today.

Of all the blessings that had come to Israel none of them had been given the gift of salvation as we have been given.

We owe far more dedication to our Savior than these who had certainly been blessed but not with eternal blessings.

Every mission that our Church is involved in and the ministry of our own church deserve our wholehearted dedication!

We must be faithful in supporting every project because the Lord is still building Temples at the same time, He is building human lives!

*1Ch 22:19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God; arise therefore, and build ye the sanctuary of the LORD God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and the holy vessels of God, into the house that is to be built to the name of the LORD.

At this time David gave Solomon the plans for the construction of the Temple and in a lot of ways it followed the plans given to Moses for the Tabernacle of the Congregation.

1Ch 28:11 Then David gave to Solomon his son the pattern of the porch, and of the houses thereof, and of the treasuries thereof, and of the upper chambers thereof, and of the inner parlours thereof, and of the place of the mercy seat,
1Ch 28:12 And the pattern of all that he had by the spirit, of the courts of the house of the LORD, and of all the chambers round about, of the treasuries of the house of God, and of the treasuries of the dedicated things:

1Ch 28:19 All this, said David, the LORD made me understand in writing by his hand upon me, even all the works of this pattern.
1Ch 28:20 And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.

We should understand that when God plans it will be a perfect plan and our job is to “Be Strong And Of Good Courage And Do It”.

When God is involved in the planning, then it is God’s pledge in the accomplishment because God’s plans never fail!

God has never asked but one thing from us and it is “FAITH”!

It is “faith” that gets us saved!

Once we are saved, then that same faith will carry us to the work of God which is building temples, human temples.

Rom_12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

After our salvation God is asking for the use of our bodies.

Our sacrifice is being dead to sin, but living for the work of the Lord.

God just asks for our reasonable service.

God just ask us to continue the work that the Lord Jesus Christ was doing before He gave His life for us!

Amen

The Fame And The Shame Of King Solomon

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

Solomon, His Fame And His Shame

1 Kings 10-11

“Fame” can be said to possess a good reputation versus a “rumor” which can only be a good or a bad report.

There are many people that the Bible mentions of having great fame.

Joshua, Mordecai, Joseph are just a few but the Bible also says that God has fame as did the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus became so famous that even kings and rulers had heard about Him!

Mat 14:1 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the “fame” of Jesus,

Solomon also became very famous throughout the world of that day because God had given to Solomon the gift of “Wisdom”!

In the time of Solomon, fame and shame became the marks of mankind and of nations and it is even more prevalent today.

Today all our leaders seek a legacy hoping that their good outweighs their bad and it would if they would just refuse to do bad things!

As wise as and as rich as Solomon was, he is remembered as much for his shame as he is for his fame if not more so!

No matter what people think of our existing president, he will be remembered for the fact that while he has been in office, he has done nothing improve the conditions of his own race nor of America!

He has even divided America more then any other president that came before him!

God placed these scriptures in the Bible for us to learn more from Solomon’s mistakes and not so much to learn of Solomon’s accomplishments!

To honor someone is to recognize their value to society.

This time next year we will be asked to vote for our next president.

From now until then, many men and women will present their fame.

But because of the way our world works, many news sources and many others will point out to us the shame of all these individuals and not so much their accomplishments.

To shame someone is to challenge their reputation!

In many cases the one with the less shame will get elected but people are so fickle that today many who should withdraw because of their shame actually take advantage of that shame showing they have exalted them selves above the ordinary people!

We must rely on the facts and the proved record of these people in order to determine who will be our next leaders and not so much on what they say, for what they say does not usually match their actions!

Pro 5:9 Lest thou give thine honour unto others, and thy years unto the cruel:

If we show a lack of concern for matters of honor and shame we will then become shameless ourselves and deny the truth and we will suffer for our own poor judgment!

Adam and Eve were not ashamed to be in the presence of God until sin came into their lives.

Gen 2:25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Once sin entered into their lives they became ashamed to be in the presence of God!

Gen 3:10 And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.

Anyone who is ashamed to be in the presence of God does not need to hold public office!

Today sin has progressed to a point where mankind has no shame in their sin because they have rejected to Word of God.

SO, Let’s see how Solomon reached this point in his own life even though he was the wisest man to have ever lived.

*****1Ki 10:1 And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions.

Let’s first see Solomon’s glory and his fame.

Though some may disagree Sheba was the country of the Sabeans.

Sheba was a prosperous nation in southern Arabia.

Scholars believe that this long 1500 mile journey was taken by this queen to establish a commercial treaty with Solomon but we already know that many kings and monarchy traveled to visit King Solomon to seek his wisdom to help them in their own nations and this queen was no different.

We can trust the Biblical account of these things!

We will also see that this queen wanted to know more about the God of Israel, who we know is the true God of all creation!

The nation of Sheba was formed by the descendants of Cush, a son of Ham who was the son of Noah.

Today this area of Sheba is known to us as Yemen.

Yemen was a rich merchant nation for 1000 years or more until it became dominated by Muslim cultures and Yemen is now in political turmoil.

Nations such as Sheba were expected to bring gifts signifying royalty.

Psa 72:10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.
Psa 72:11 Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him.

This in typology, this represents the time when all nations will worship the true King of Kings and come to Jerusalem once again seeking wisdom, but this is still in the future.

Isa 60:3 And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

1Ti 6:14 That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:
1Ti 6:15 Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;

The Lord Jesus Christ also used this historical truth of the Queen of Sheba, in His rebuke of the Pharisees.

Mat 12:42 The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.

Jesus was saying, that even this great queen was wise enough to seek the wisdom and the knowledge of the God of Israel and came to Solomon, yet these Pharisees, who already had the Word of God, were not wise enough to seek the kingdom of God even though the Lord Jesus was much wiser than Solomon and was in their presence that very day.

God says we must first seek the kingdom of God, before we can truly see the benefits in this life we have now.

Mat 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Mat 6:34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

These Sabeans were indeed traveling merchants and if they were to ever go further north to sell their wares they would have had to go through the area of land that was ruled by King Solomon.

*****1Ki 10:2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart.

In many ways Solomon was a type of Christ in typology and that being the case, the Queen of Sheba would then be a type of the Church!

We all know that as we are lead by the Holy Spirit, and we will also sometimes have hard questions of spiritual things in our daily walk with the Lord.

This queen was also well aware as she traveled through Israel, how Solomon was well prepared to defend all of Israel.

We should remember it was some of these Sabeans who had also destroyed Job’s flocks because Job was also a merchant with many things to sell.

Job 1:15 And the Sabeans fell upon them, and took them away; yea, they have slain the servants with the edge of the sword; and I only am escaped alone to tell thee.

These Sabeans were willing to destroy the competition if it were possible.

We can be sure that this was no ordinary merchant caravan.

This queen would not have traveled without her military escort!

This queen had many reasons to visit Solomon and during her visit she found that the rumors she had heard of King Solomon would prove to only tell half the truth of his might and of his fame.

*****1Ki 10:6 And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.
1Ki 10:7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, “the half was not told me”: thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.

This queen had seen the splendor of the palace of Solomon.

This queen had seen royalty like she had never observed before.

This queen had seen the construction projects as she had passed many of them along her route to Jerusalem.

This queen had seen the Temple that was prepared to worship the God of Israel.

2Ch 9:3 And when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,
2Ch 9:4 And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

And it is written that she had no more spirit in her from the sight of all these things!

This queen was overwhelmed by what she had seen and what she had heard!

This queen then had a great desire for a new spirit!

Psa 119:81 My soul fainteth for thy salvation: but I hope in thy word.

What does God say to the Church?

Isa 64:4 For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

1Co 2:9 But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

What did the Apostle John do when he saw the glory of Heaven?

Rev 1:17 And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

We can be sure that as wonderful as we believe Heaven to be, we do not have a clue to the real glory and the real splendor of our Heavenly home.

We do not even know half the truth of the glory of Heaven!

Words by them selves cannot explain the glory of Heaven and it is only when we are like Christ that we can know these things.

This should be our main reason to keep steady in our walk with the Lord!

Our goal must be to tell as many as we can about the Lord Jesus Christ, so they can seek His wisdom for themselves just as this queen had done from Solomon.

*****1Ki 10:23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom.
1Ki 10:24 And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.

During this period of King Solomon, the Phoenicians were the dominant sea power, Assyria and Egypt were also great military powers but it was Israel that was the dominant nation of that day and also the richest of all nations.

King Solomon financed the Phoenician sea going operations and King Hiram shared his sea going knowledge with King Solomon but he also paid a considerable tribute to Israel.

We can see that even Egypt sought peace with Israel as Egypt’s Pharaoh gave Solomon his daughter for a wife.

Assyria was not near strong enough to challenge Israel at this time.

All the known powers of that day sought out King Solomon to hear his wisdom.

All the known powers of that day paid tribute to Israel and to King Solomon and he and Israel became very rich.

Many other nations followed after Pharaoh and offered their daughters as wives in order to have peace with Israel.

We can see that it takes a strong military presence to insure peace, a weak military is a sure sign you will be attacked even by those that say they are friendly.

These are all facts because it was God who places fear in man!

Psa 102:15 So the heathen shall fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth thy glory.

We know that at the return of Jesus Christ all nations will again have this fear of the Lord!

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

But, Solomon began to use all these things to his advantage to control the economies of the world.

*****1Ki 10:25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
1Ki 10:26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen: and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots, and with the king at Jerusalem.
1Ki 10:27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.
1Ki 10:28 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king’s merchants received the linen yarn at a price.

Solomon used his riches to build a great military machine and placed them strategically through his realm.

Silver had no more value than ordinary stones.

Precious timber had no more value than cheap lumber.

Solomon controlled the price of durable goods and the breeding of pure blood animals.

Solomon’s annual intake of gold was 25 tons.

In today’s market one ton goes for about 32 million dollars.

That would easily be 8 billion dollars today of tribute paid per year to King Solomon and Solomon reigned for 40 years.

The glory of Solomon was open and visible to the entire world, but inside of Solomon, this outer glory began to influence his inner person!

Solomon fell into great sin!

Nehemiah challenged all of Israel with this truth in a great sermon.

Neh 13:26 Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin.

Solomon was beloved of God but even in all his wisdom, given to him from God, Solomon fell into the snares of the devil.

The downfall of Solomon began when he began trying to please his many wives!

*****1Ki 11:1 But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;
1Ki 11:2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.

Let’s listen as Solomon describes his own downfall.

Ecc 4:13 Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and foolish king, who will no more be admonished.

Solomon became so rich and powerful that no one would tell him that what he was doing was wrong because they feared for their own lives!

Again Solomon wrote of his own downfall.

Ecc 11:8 But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity.
Ecc 11:9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.

Solomon realized that though no one else had the power to judge his actions, there was One who would judge him and judge him harshly!

Ecc 12:8 Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.

Solomon realized that he had spent to much of his life in vain!

The immediate occasion of the fall of Solomon was the influence of his foreign idolatrous wives!

Solomon did not just have one wife of paganism, Solomon had way too many wives!

*****1Ki 11:3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
1Ki 11:4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

1) Not only did these wives sap Solomon’s physical strength, they blunted his perception and dulled his morals.

2) They had worshiped false gods all their days and they convinced Solomon to provide them temples so they could worship the idols of their own nations.

3) To make it convenient for them, they insisted that these places of worship be located adjacent to the House of God.

4) They then convinced Solomon to worship with them.

Solomon’s 700 wives were mostly from kings who paid tribute and who sought peace with Israel.

Solomon’s 300 concubines were considered secondary wives and this seemed to never cause jealousy among the true wives.

But many of Solomon’s wives were never truly treated as wives as Solomon says himself.

Son 6:8 There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and “virgins without number”.

This would be 60 queens, 80 concubines, and an untold amount of virgins.

The nation of Israel may have been at peace at this time, but Solomon was not at peace with himself!

Solomon sinned grievously against Jehovah who had set him on his throne and had given him such wonderful gifts.

Solomon had violated the kingdom charter given to Moses by God Himself!

Deu 17:14 When thou art come unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt possess it, and shalt dwell therein, and shalt say, I will set a king over me, like as all the nations that are about me;
Deu 17:15 Thou shalt in any wise set him king over thee, whom the LORD thy God shall choose: one from among thy brethren shalt thou set king over thee: thou mayest not set a stranger over thee, which is not thy brother.
Deu 17:16 But he shall not multiply horses to himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt, to the end that he should multiply horses: forasmuch as the LORD hath said unto you, Ye shall henceforth return no more that way.
Deu 17:17 Neither shall he multiply wives to himself, that his heart turn not away: neither shall he greatly multiply to himself silver and gold.
Deu 17:18 And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites:
Deu 17:19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read therein all the days of his life: that he may learn to fear the LORD his God, to keep all the words of this law and these statutes, to do them:
Deu 17:20 That his heart be not lifted up above his brethren, and that he turn not aside from the commandment, to the right hand, or to the left: to the end that he may prolong his days in his kingdom, he, and his children, in the midst of Israel.

Solomon had openly violated the Mosaic Law of marriage and he knew it!

Ecc 9:9 Live joyfully with the wife whom thou lovest all the days of the life of thy vanity, which he hath given thee under the sun, all the days of thy vanity: for that is thy portion in this life, and in thy labour which thou takest under the sun.

And Solomon fell even deeper into sin!

*****1Ki 11:5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
1Ki 11:6 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.

Ashtoreth was the moon goddess of the Phoenicians and she was associated with Baal the sun god.

She was also known as Ishtar, Astarte, and Diana and open sexual behavior was used in this worship of her.

Milcom or Moloch or Chemosh, were considered as fire gods and were worshiped with human sacrifices and mutilation but there were also some who made vows of celibacy and virginity in worship of them, which is still seen in some religions of today.

A place for Milcom was even built on the Mount of Olives.

2Ki 23:13 And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile.

*****1Ki 11:7 Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
1Ki 11:8 And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.

And Solomon did these same things for all his wives.

1) Solomon openly violated the first and second commandments of the Laws of Moses.

Exo 20:3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
Exo 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth:
Exo 20:5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Exo 20:6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

2) Solomon openly defied God.

1Ki 9:3 And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there perpetually.
1Ki 9:4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
1Ki 9:5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
1Ki 9:6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and worship them:
1Ki 9:7 Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all people:
1Ki 9:8 And at this house, which is high, every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house?
1Ki 9:9 And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them all this evil.

3) By placing places of idol worship adjacent to the Temple, Solomon was flaunting an insult directly in the face of God.

4) It is a terrible sin for Solomon to abuse the wisdom that was a gift from God by trying to add religion and philosophy to God given knowledge!

5) It is a terrible sin to place God in competition to false deities!

America is not the nation it once was, because our leaders have allowed paganism to take a foothold in America and the Church has also compromised the Word of God in the name of peace with these false things.

And God became angry with Solomon.

*****1Ki 11:9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice,
1Ki 11:10 And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded.

God had personally blessed Solomon at Gibeon but God had also warned Solomon.

1Ki 3:14 And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.

God had personally blessed Solomon at Jerusalem but God had warned Solomon here also.

1Ki 9:4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments:
1Ki 9:5 Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.

Solomon had also been given many instructions by his father David.

Solomon had been taught the Word of God by God’s prophet Nathan.

Solomon therefore had no excuses for his actions in turning away from God!

We should never doubt the Word of God!

God means what He says and God says what He means!

The Lord Jesus told a great parable to the disciples about the faithful steward and near the end of that parable Jesus had these words!

Luk 12:47 And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.
Luk 12:48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required”: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
Luk 12:49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?
Luk 12:50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!

Solomon had been given much by the Lord and Solomon was given a great opportunity to spread the Word of God around the known world of that time period but Solomon failed in these things.

Solomon fell at the stumbling block of Satan!

1Jn 2:16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

As Solomon fell from the “Grace” of God, so did the nation of Israel, and Israel has not recovered since that day.

1) Israel would soon become a divided nation.

We can also see that America is more divided than at any time in our own history.

2) The division of Israel resulted in the destruction of ten of the twelve tribes of Israel.

Today the people of God are being destroyed all over the world and the world does not seem to care especially our own leaders.

3) Idolatry became the religion of Israel.

Idolatry now rules in America, as wants and desires outweigh the Word of God!

4) Division made Israel a weak nation in the presence of her enemies.

America is now seen as a weak nation in the presence of all our enemies.

5) The destruction of the ten tribes of Israel brought about the Samaritans who were a mixed people who built there own temple and compromised the Word of God.

In America the Word of God is being modernized so much, till it is not even the truth anymore.

6) In Israel philosophy and religion and atheism began to dominate the people.

We can see this same thing happening to America today!

Solomon had allowed God to be just a small part of his life and he had began to rely on his own wisdom to rule in his life.

So therefore God said:

1Ki 11:11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.

What is the truth?

When rulers live in the splendor of high office and in luxury, they become irresponsible to the moral laws of God!

They will try their best to maintain costly establishments and the people will find that taxation and servant-hood are the dominant themes of these rulers, our own president included.

What does God say?

Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

What is the truth of God?

1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
1Co 1:19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.

So, how does God continue to do His work?

1Co 1:27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
1Co 1:28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
1Co 1:29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

God’s will, will be done no matter what the leaders of our world try to do in their own wisdom!

Questions?

Let’s Pray!

Solomon The Dedication Of The Temple

/ Bobby Mayfield / Leave a comment

The Dedication Of The Temple

1 Kings 8:1-9:28; 2 Chronicles 5:1-7:22

Focus On: 1 Kings 8:3-6, 10, 11, 18-20, 22, 23, 33, 34, 46-51, 63, 66

In our last lesson we saw part of the construction of the Temple and it’s furnishings.

It took seven years from start to finish in the construction of the Temple, not for the lack of skills but only because of the lack of modern machinery.

And as brother Buddy can attest to, it would have taken a great skill to assemble material that was custom made and processed in so many different places.

This glorious Temple built under the direction of King Solomon had as one of it’s purposes to be a witness to the world in that day.

Since God will not live in temples made by hands but only in temples that He constructs Himself, we that are saved have this same purpose, to be a witness of the glory of God to this world we live in!

So now it was time to “dedicate” this marvelous Temple.

To “dedicate” this Temple meant “to set it apart for God’s use”!

It was not just the building itself that was dedicated for God’s use. It was the building, all the furniture, all the vessels, all the altars, and all the tools that were a part of this glorious Temple.

Another word for this “dedication” would be “sanctification”.

The Temple of Solomon could only be dedicated one time.

The Temple of Solomon could never be perfect.

We know that God will not live in man made structures but He will live in a “Born Again” child of God and it is the work of the Holy Spirit to take that dedicated child of God on to perfection!

1Co 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
1Co 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Rom 6:13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

These temples that are made by the hands of God are built upon our own “Faith”!

Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

So let’s see the dedication process for the Temple of Solomon and relate what we see to each Christian.

*****1Ki 8:3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.
1Ki 8:4 And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the Levites bring up.

We must realize that this entire Temple complex and all the things associated with it were designed to house the Ark of the Covenant.

It was the Ark that was the symbol of God’s presence and without the presence of God, this Temple would be just a building and of no use for the work of God!

King David had made the mistake of moving the Ark in his own way the first time and not obeying the Word of God and it had caused the death of a good man, Solomon was not about to make that same mistake.

God had said the Ark could only be moved one way.

Num 3:30 And the chief of the house of the father of the families of the Kohathites shall be Elizaphan the son of Uzziel.
Num 3:31 And their charge shall be the ark, and the table, and the candlestick, and the altars, and the vessels of the sanctuary wherewith they minister, and the hanging, and all the service thereof.
Num 3:32 And Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be chief over the chief of the Levites, and have the oversight of them that keep the charge of the sanctuary.

The movement of the Ark had to coincide with the proper time.

This was not only the time of the Feast of the Tabernacles but it also fell a Jubilee year and the fulfillment of the words of Moses!

Deu 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:
Deu 16:17 Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.

It was in Jerusalem where God chose to have the Temple that was built by Solomon.

It was also the time of the Jubilee that is considered the acceptable year of the Lord:

Isa 61:1 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;
Isa 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
Isa 61:3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

We know that Jesus Christ also used this same passage when He began His ministry.

So the purpose of the Temple was:

1) To provide a fixed place for all the Nation of Israel to worship.

2) To provide a central place where all the tribes of Israel could assemble at the time of the three feast as directed by God to preserve the unity of Israel.

This was the place to meet Jehovah.

This was the place to offer sacrifices, the blood atonement, the propitiation.

This was the place to meet the Priests, the intermediary between Jehovah and the people.

This was the place to meet Jehovah at the right time which was, daily, weekly, monthly, and especially yearly at the annual feast.

This was the place to learn how to approach God in the proper way.

3) This was the place that was to be a type of the buildings that God would build.

1Pe 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

Isa 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.

And as many as believed Word Of God showed up.

*****1Ki 8:5 And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude.
1Ki 8:6 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.
1Ki 8:7 For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the staves thereof above.

We need to remember that this entire Temple complex was designed to house the Ark of the Covenant and only then to become a house of prayer!

Isa 56:7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Isa 56:8 The Lord GOD which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.

The Temple was never to be just for the people of Israel but for all people. The Temple was never to be just some royal chapel nor become some tourist attraction.

It Jesus who showed God’s wrath at what was taking place in the Temple in Jerusalem as He trained the disciples.

Mar 11:15 And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves;
Mar 11:16 And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple.
Mar 11:17 And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves.

To the Church, the Ark emphasizes the “Person” of Jesus Christ just as the “Mercy Seat” portrayed by the Cross, emphasizes the “Purpose” of Jesus Christ!

The Cherubim on the Mercy Seat faced each other as a sign they observed the mysteries of God’s Grace.

1Pe 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

The Cherubim in the Holy of Holies faced the Holy Place where the congregation were, as a sign that they also observed the ministry of God’s people.

1Co 4:9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.

Once put in the Most Holy Place, the staves were withdrawn enough to guide the High Priests but not far enough to be seen by the congregation.

Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

*****1Ki 8:8 And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day.
1Ki 8:9 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt.
1Ki 8:10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,

Originally the Ark had contained not only the stone tablets but also the “golden pot that held manna” and also “Aaron’s rod” that had budded but these had been removed leaving only the two stones.

Heb 9:4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

The Ark has since disappeared and may never be found again!

Rev 11:19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and “there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament”: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

This Ark was originally called the Ark of the Testament:

Exo 25:22 And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon “the ark of the testimony”, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.

It was then that God showed up!

This is the same Cloud of Glory that had filled the Tabernacle when it had been completed.

This cloud was the symbol of the divine presence of the Lord and a symbol of God’s acceptance of the Temple as a place of worship.

Exo 40:34 Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
Exo 40:35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.

Just as Moses had been awestruck by this obvious sign of the presence of God, so it was with all of Israel this day of the Temple dedication.

*****1Ki 8:11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.

The glory of the Lord is known as the “shekinah”.

Exo 13:21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night:

Today in our churches it is that presence of the Holy Spirit!

Jo 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

And in another parallel it is God’s presence in each believer.

Eph 2:21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
Eph 2:22 In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

Solomon spent a great price in building the first Temple but God paid an even greater price for the living temples He builds with the blood of His Son Jesus!

And so the Temple became a place where the divine glory of God is revealed to His people and just as Solomon establish his royal residence in sight of this Temple, the Lord Jesus will one day establish His residence in the New Jerusalem and become our Temple.

Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

It was not Solomon that had caused this to happen as much as it was his father King David.

*****1Ki 8:18 And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well that it was in thine heart.
1Ki 8:19 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house unto my name.
1Ki 8:20 And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake, and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.

On this day of dedication Solomon acted as King and High Priest in other words a royal priest, a priest that sat on a throne!

Solomon had rule over the civil power.

Solomon had rule over the priestly power.

Solomon had rule over the religious power all the days of his life.

Solomon was given a tremendous responsibility and Solomon failed!

BUT, on this day of dedication Solomon made the nation of Israel aware that God will always keep His promises!

God in His “Goodness” and His “Grace” had made a covenant with David concerning his family and this House of God.

What God speaks with His mouth, God accomplishes with His hands.

1Ki 8:15 And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which spake with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying,

What God promised to David, God fulfilled through Solomon.

But we must not believe that God did these things to glorify Solomon nor his father David.

God did these thing in honor of His own name Jehovah!

We can see the title LORD mentioned 14 times in this prayer of Solomon.

Solomon was very careful to give God the glory for what he had accomplished.

When we come together to worship we must remember why we came to the House of God for it must be to worship God, by the Holy Spirit and through His Son Jesus.

We must give God the glory for what He has done in our lives and even if God only saves us He has done much more than what we deserved!

We must also certainly never forget that when God makes promises, God uses people to fulfill those promises during this time of God’s “Grace”!

Solomon rejoiced in his being the son of promise to his father David but the true Son of Promise is the Lord Jesus Christ!

Rom 1:2 (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,)
Rom 1:3 Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh;
Rom 1:4 And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:

Solomon began his prayer of dedication while standing but Solomon just as soon went to his knees.

*****1Ki 8:22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven:

Our prayers are not to be a request only thing!

It is by Prayer that we have fellowship with the Lord.

It is by prayer that we have communion with God.

And it is by prayer that we are identified with God.

True prayer is a soul that knows who his true Father is and pours out his heart in loving devotion!

*****1Ki 8:23 And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart:

There may be many religions in our world but there is only One Jehovah God.

Sure He is the God of Israel but He is also the God of joy of all those that believe but also the God of wrath to all those that do not believe!

There are many in our world that think they can loose their salvation but that could only happen if we did not have an Intercessor who is dedicated to keeping us saved!

Rom 8:34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

The Lord Jesus is not just preparing us a place in our new home but He is also saving us to the uttermost so we can get there!

Heb 7:24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.
Heb 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

Even when we make a sinful mistake, and we all do, it is our Intercessor who restores us to fellowship when that fellowship is broken.

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

No, there is no other god like unto the LORD!

Mic 7:18 Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy.
Mic 7:19 He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

All these things are just as true for the nation of Israel!

*****1Ki 8:33 When thy people Israel be smitten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make supplication unto thee in this house:
1Ki 8:34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou gavest unto their fathers.

If we need a time piece to know where we are in Biblical fulfillment, then we need only to look toward Israel!

Israel has been restored as a nation and as small and as vulnerable as they are, Israel stands firmly and boldly before the world.

This is a sign to the “Born Again” Christian that we are also to stand boldly before the world!

Solomon recognized that Jehovah God rules all His creation and has complete provincial control of all nature and all of Heaven.

Solomon realized that prayer changes things!

If prayer could not change the outcome of things God would not teach us to pray!

The hope of Israel is the ultimate restoration of all things under the Messiah!

Mic 5:4 And he shall stand and feed in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God; and they shall abide: for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.

The hope of the Church is the Rapture!

1Co 15:51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
1Co 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
1Co 15:54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

The Rapture has not taken place and God is not through with Israel but these things get closer with every passing day.

Most all remaining prophesy concerns Israel as the Church could be removed at any moment!

*****1Ki 8:45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause.
1Ki 8:46 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land of the enemy, far or near;
1Ki 8:47 Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness;
1Ki 8:48 And so return unto thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for thy name:

What is the truth of repentance?

To repent is to “bethink”, which is to recall to the mind.

Repentance is a complete change of mind followed with a complete change of direction!

Repentance is not just saying I’m sorry!

And how are we to love the Lord?

Moses taught the children of Israel with these words:

Deu 6:5 And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Jesus taught the disciples:

Mat 22:37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

God said the way to get restored after wickedness Israel would have to return to the Lord with all their heart and all their soul, even if they were in the land of their enemies!

This is a picture of the “Grace of God” and God tells the Church to do the very same thing!

1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

The God of the Old Testament is the same God of the New Testament!

And all these things come about when we pray.

*****1Ki 8:49 Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause,
1Ki 8:50 And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them:
1Ki 8:51 For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron:

How do we know that God will hear our prayers?

1st) Psa 66:18 If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:

If we have not repented then we can be sure God will not hear our prayer!

2nd) If we confess our sins, God is faithful to forgive our sins.

If we have confessed our sins we can be sure that God is listening to our prayers.

The truth is that God will answer every prayer that reaches into Heaven!

And, God will always provide the things that meets His will for our lives!

What is the will of God?

Col 1:9 For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;
Col 1:10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

Being able to get our prayers answered is the will of God!

Being filled with knowledge and understanding of God, we will have the wisdom of God’s will for our lives.

Walking worthy of the Lord Jesus is being in the will of God!

We can know that our prayers will be answered if we belong to God!

Not one Word out of the mouth of God will ever fail!

*****1Ki 8:54 And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread up to heaven.
1Ki 8:55 And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,
1Ki 8:56 Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by the hand of Moses his servant.

God had promised David that the reign of King Solomon would be a time of peace for the nation of Israel!

Joshua had seen the same thing as Solomon was seeing.

Jos 23:14 And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth: and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof.

And if all the good things will always come true, then all the bad things will certainly be true when we ignore the Word of God!

Jos 23:15 Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.

But what is the pure truth of God?

When we become part of the family of God, He will never leave us or forsake us!

1Sa 12:22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.

God will simply not ever do anything that goes against His own nature!

Why?

*****1Ki 8:57 The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:
1Ki 8:58 That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.
1Ki 8:59 And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall require:
1Ki 8:60 That all the people of the earth may know that the LORD is God, and that there is none else.

If we will just walk in the ways of God’s Word.

If we will just keep the two “royal commandments” of the Lord Jesus Christ.

If we will just study the Word of God we will be able to know how God deals with sin.

And all the world will know that the LORD, He is God!

2Jn 1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

1Jn 2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

1Jn 4:2 Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

1Jn 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.

There is no other way to be in the family of God except by Jesus Christ!

If we walk in His ways, then all the world will know that the LORD, He is God!

Not Allah, not Confucius, not Buddha, not any other false thing!

*****1Ki 8:61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as at this day.
1Ki 8:62 And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the LORD.
1Ki 8:63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.

The pure truth of the Lord is that He provides the needs that we require daily.

With the nation of Israel observing his actions, Solomon had prayed directly to the Lord.

Solomon was dedicating the new Temple to the Lord.

Now Solomon was asking the entire nation of Israel to rededicate themselves to the Lord.

It was a time of national revival and we need this in America today!

We need to let our hearts be as perfect as humanly possible with the Lord.

We need to walk in the statutes of the Lord, the “royal law” of Jesus Christ.

We need to keep all the commandments of God and see that no man-made laws are written that go against the statutes of God.

And We Must Then Sacrifice Ourselves To The Lord!

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

We can see that a godly national leader can have a tremendous impact on the any nation.

We must dedicate ourselves to the Lord!

We must dedicate our places of worship to the Lord!

We must dedicate our Nation to the Lord!

*****1Ki 8:66 On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his servant, and for Israel his people.

A nation that knows Jehovah God will truly be blessed and they will know it!

A nation that knows the Lord will also be a blessing to it’s leaders.

1Pe 2:13 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;
1Pe 2:14 Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.
1Pe 2:15 For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:
1Pe 2:16 As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.
1Pe 2:17 Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

Today we find America is even more divided than it was at the time of the Civil War!

AND, it is not because of States Rights as it was in those days though that is a major part of it.

It is not because of slavery because slavery does not exist in that form today in America even though it is still in much of the world.

America is divided because we do not follow the statutes and the commandments of God!

America is divided because our national leaders do not accept the Word of God as the basic tool for humanity!

America is divided because God’s people have allowed Satan’s worldly system to dominate over the truth of God!

Solomon dismissed Israel to go back home hoping they would return to the ways of God.

Our leader has dismissed America in all things, because he has exalted himself above not only the office that he holds but he has exalted himself above God!

We “may” get one more opportunity to use our vote to change things but if we fail once again we may never have that same opportunity again!

Questions?

Let’s Pray!